Material description

Material ID: OTH24

Material type: Wood polymer composite (WPC).

Polymer: Cellulose and polyethylene (80%)

Additives (fire retardants, fillers or traces of inorganic elements): Talc (12%), Ferric Oxide (6%), Silicon (1%), Calcium (1%), traces of other elements (<1%)

Core thickness: 23.22mm

 

Table 1. Estimated mass concentration of compounds.
CompoundMass Concentration (%)
Cellulose and polyethylene (-)80
Talc (Mg3Si4O12H2)12
Ferric Oxide (Fe2O3)6
Silicon (Si)1
Calcium (Ca)1
Traces of aluminium (Al)<1
Traces of sulfur (S)<1
Traces of chlorine (Cl)<1
Traces of potassium (K)<1
Traces of titanium (Ti)<1

A. Material composition identification

A.1 Attenuated total reflection – Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR)

Table 2. FTIR compound identification.
Identified Compounds
Cellulose and polyethylene (-)
Talc (Mg3Si4O12H2)
Ferric Oxide (Fe2O3)
...
Figure 1 . FTIR spectra: Absorbance percentage versus wavenumber from the sample.
...
Figure 2. FTIR spectra: Absorbance percentage versus wavenumber from the sample and the identified compounds.

A.2 Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence (EDXRF)

Table 2. Inorganic elements and their mass concentration identified with EDXRF.
ElementMass Concentration (%)
Fe6
Si5
Mg3
Ca1
Cl<1
Al<1
S<1
K<1
Ti<1
P<1
...
Figure 3. EDXRF spectra. Counts vs energy. Identified elements are shown as vertical lines.

B. Thermogravimetric analysis

Table 3. Mass fraction of residue after thermal decomposition.
ConditionFraction of mass residue at 800°C
Non-oxidative (nitrogen)0.15
Oxidative (air)0.07
Table 4. Temperature and amplitude of main peaks in non-oxidative conditions.
Peak IDTemperature peak (°C)Amplitude of peak (°C-1)
Peak 13725.34 x 10-3
Peak 24868.79 x 10-3
Table 5. Temperature and amplitude of main peaks in oxidative conditions.
Peak IDTemperature peak (°C)Amplitude of peak (°C-1)
Peak 13645.58 x 10-3
Peak 24754.59 x 10-3
Peak 35123.56 x 10-3
...
Figure 4. Normalised mass (solid line) and derivative of the normalised mass (dashed line) in 150 ml min-1 of nitrogen and a heating rate of 20°C min-1.
...
Figure 5. Normalised mass (solid line) and derivative of the normalised mass (dashed line) in 150 ml min-1 of air and a heating rate of 20°C min-1 .

C. Gross Heat of Combustion

Table 7. Gross Heat of Combustion individual results for sample.
TrialΔHc [kJ g-1]
Trial 127.60
Trial 227.07
Trial 327.33
Average27.33
Std dev0.27

D. Ignition parameters

Table 8. Summary of ignition parameters for sample.
Critical heat flux for ignitionIgnition temperatureTotal heat transfer coefficient of lossesApparent thermal inertia
q̇″cr [kW m−2]Tig [°C]hr [W m-2 K-1]kρc [kW2 m-4 K-2 s]
19.5042343.500.663
...
Figure 6. Time-to-ignition vs incident radiant heat flux for samples.

E. Burning behaviour

Table 9. Summary of key burning behaviour metrics.
Heat fluxTestTime to ignitionFraction of mass residuePeak heat release rateTotal energy released
q̇″inc [kW m-2] tig [s]mres [-]q̇″p [kW m-2]Qt [MJ m-2]
35 kW m-2
Test 11000.63201.89194.26
Test 2970.72193.85186.87
Avg980.67197.87190.56
50 kW m-2
Test 1450.62273.14240.62
Test 2420.63261.03229.53
Avg440.63267.08235.08
60 kW m-2
Test 1270.55330.29272.94
Test 2270.59301.96257.32
Avg270.57316.13265.13
80 kW m-2
Test 1----
Test 2----
Avg----
...
Figure 7. Normalised mass loss over time for samples tested with 35, 50, 60 and 80 kW m-2.
...
Figure 8. Heat release rate per unit area over time for samples tested with 35, 50, 60 and 80 kW m-2.
Table 10. Effective Heat of Combustion individual results for sample.
TestΔHc [kJ g-1]
35 kW m-2 (Test 1)24.73
35 kW m-2 (Test 2)25.30
50 kW m-2 (Test 1)25.31
50 kW m-2 (Test 2)24.72
60 kW m-2 (Test 1)24.82
60 kW m-2 (Test 2)25.45
80 kW m-2 (Test 1)-
80 kW m-2 (Test 2)-
Average25.06
Std dev0.33

F. Flame Spread

Table 11. Minimum heat flux for flame spread rate and minimum flame spread rate for sample.
Orientationq̇″min.spread [kW m-2]Vf.min [mm s-1]
Horizontal4.80-
Vertical4.20-
...
Figure 9. Lateral flame spread rate versus heat flux.
...
Figure 10. Vertical flame spread rate versus heat flux.
...
Figure 11. Vf-1/2 as function of q̇″ext in horizontal configuration.
...
Figure 12. Vf-1/2 as function of q̇″ext in vertical configuration.
Table 12. Flame spread parameter results for sample.
OrientationTrial(kρcpΦh2)12 [m32 s12 kW-1]Φ [kW2 m-3]
Horizontal16.1099.39
Horizontal25.65910.94
Vertical11.375185.30
Vertical21.26220.85