Researchers found that the coatings produced with PA/ZnO hybrid nanoparticles can protect metal substrates from fire-related damage.

Research proves that the incorporation of PA/ZnO hybrid nanoparticles in polyurethane coatings leads to a significant improvement in flame-retardant properties. Source: Adobe.Stock

Phytic acid (PA)-coated zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were developed to produce high-efficiency flame-retarding (FR) additives for coating formulations. These hybrid (organic/inorganic) additives were fabricated using a layer-by-layer (LBL) approach to harness the FR properties of PA and ZnO on a single-platform nanoscale scaffold. These nanoparticles can be uniformly dispersed in a polyurethane (PU) coating for applications on metal substrates. The incorporation of the PA/ZnO layer-by-layer nanoparticles at 20 wt% of the polymeric resin did not adversely affect the physico-mechanical properties of the coatings.