although effective in imparting fire retardancy, some of these halogenated fr are extremely toxic, environmentally persistent and leach out from polymers increasing our risk to a variety of health disorders, including cancer. realizing this hazard, the use of certain types of halogenated fr has already been banned by the european union and in several states in u.s.a. still, over a billion pounds of fr additives are used commercially worldwide each year.

the umass lowell research team has developed a new class of non-halogenated flame retardant materials by transforming naturally occurring phenols into polymeric fr additives. the synthesis can be performed using clean and environmentally friendly biocatalytic / biomimetic methods as well as using conventional chemical methods. one of the raw materials used is cardanol (a natural phenol) – an inexpensive, renewable and biodegradable byproduct (oil) derived from cashew nut processing.

this project demonstrates the ability to transform a waste byproduct obtained from a renewable source into a value added product with the potential to replace toxic halogenated fr. this new class of fr can eliminate or reduce the use of toxic halogenated fr, contribute to preserving our ecosystem and have a profound positive impact on people’s health and lives.