Kinetics of degradation reactions within intumescent and subliming fire retardant coatings

Thermal degradation of subliming and intumescent fire retardant coatings is studied and kinetic information is derived for the various physical and chemical processes occurring within the coatings. An approach that requires estimation of the invariant values of kinetic parameters is used in the study. The probability associated with eighteen different kinetic equations were evaluated to estimate the influence of each process on the oxidative degradation of the coating material. These probabilities were then used to model the global kinetics for the degradation of the coatings and the results were used to predict the behaviour of the fire retardant coatings when subjected to elevated temperatures.