In this work, polyamide 66/polyphenylene oxide (PA66/PPO) composites, including the flame retardants 98 wt% aluminum diethylphosphinate + 2 wt% polydimethylsiloxane (P@Si), Al(OH)3-coated red phosphorus (RP*), and glass fiber (GF), were systematically studied, respectively. The limiting oxygen index (LOI), UL-94 vertical burning level, and thermal and mechanical properties of the PA66/PPO composites were characterized. The results showed that the P@Si and RP flame retardants both improved the LOI value and UL-94 vertical burning level of the PA66/PPO composites, and PA66/PPO composites passed to the UL-94 V-0 level when the contents of P@Si and RP* flame retardants were 16 wt% and 8 wt%. On the other hand, the mechanical properties of the PA66/PPO composites were reduced from a ductile to a brittle fracture mode. The addition of GF effectively made up for these defects and improved the mechanical properties of the PA66/PPO composites containing the P@Si and RP*, but it did not change the fracture mode. P@Si and RP* flame retardants improved the thermal decomposition of PA66/PPO/GF composites and reduced the maximum mass loss rates, showing that the PA66/PPO/GF composites containing the P@Si and RP* flame retardants could be used in higher-temperature fields.
Keywords: PA66/PPO composites; UL-94 vertical burning level; limiting oxygen index; mechanical properties; thermal decomposition.