ABSTRACT
Polymers are widely used in transportation, construction, electronics, and other fields. However, the flammability of polymers and their smoke toxicity during combustion cause fire hazards. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare flame retardant polymers by appropriate flame retardant modification. In the current research, halogen, phosphorus, nitrogen, and silicon flame retardants meet the requirements of polymer fire safety to a certain extent. However, with the increasing demand for environment-friendly, sustainable, durable, and mechanical properties of flame retardant polymers in life and production, it is necessary to develop novel efficient flame retardant polymer materials with excellent comprehensive performance. In recent years, two-dimensional (2D) nanosheet flame retardants have attracted wide attention. The barrier effect of 2D nanosheets effectively inhibits the release of heat and smoke products during polymer combustion. At the same time, the metal elements, phosphorus, and nitrogen-containing structures in 2D nanosheets play different roles in the condensed or gaseous phase. This chapter summarizes the structural characteristics of clay, layered double hydroxides, layered transition metal carbides, graphene (oxide), graphitic carbon nickel, layered boron nickel, molybdenum disulfide, and black phosphorus, describes the preparation methods of polymer-based nanocomposites, and analyzes their flame retardant mechanisms in polymers.
