1 Introduction Ann Marie Lak, Global Technical Manager of Fibers and Textiles, GE Plastics, and Youssef Fakhreddine, Global Plastics Industry Manager, are affiliated with General Motors of the United States and promote their new Ultem flame retardant materials in the International Fiber Magazine It is reported that the California state of the United States has announced extremely strict mattress flame retardant regulations. This will undoubtedly promote the development of research on the production of fireproof materials. GE's Ultem resin material is very suitable to meet the requirements of California Technology Bulletin (TB) 603 standard for bedding flame retardant. 2. Overview Ultem polyetherimide (PEI) resin is widely used in materials that need to be flame retardant and prevent the spread of smoke. It helps product manufacturers such as mattresses and Simmons to produce products that prevent the acceleration of open flames. GE has never produced fiber materials with Ultem resin in the past, but its scientific and technical personnel are not afraid of hardships, and downstream manufacturers began to evaluate its potential function for high-energy fabrics and conduct research The California TB603 standard is about to be implemented, which warns bedding manufacturers because the latter often uses polyurethane foam and polyester batting to make products. The California standard sets technical requirements, including the use of high-performance raw materials and different mattress designs to solve this problem. Another related issue is that halogen flame retardants can release toxic smoke. The EU regulations on Restriction of Dangerous Goods (RoHS) strictly prohibit the use of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) often contained in flame retardants. California's standards are expected to be adopted by other regions, such as the recent National Standards announced by the Consumer Safety Commission (CPSC), which requires manufacturers to ensure that flame retardant materials meet various market regulations. 3. R ​​& D process GE Ultem resin is an unshaped high-performance polymer, which exhibits outstanding high temperature resistance, good strength, large modulus, broad-spectrum chemical resistance, inherent flame resistance and low smoke generation; glass transition (transition) temperature is At 217 ° C and a relative thermal index (RTI) of 170 ° C, this polymer maintains strength integrity at high temperatures. Ultem resin products have been used in safety facilities and occasions where strict flame retardant standards are required, such as firefighter helmets, interior decoration materials for aircraft and trains, etc. These are all materials that can be used as mattresses and bedding Key factors. Ultem resin is an amorphous structure and has high temperature resistance, which will make it difficult to draw fibers. Because it is an amorphous (non-crystalline) material, it has a higher viscosity than crystals, making it more difficult to pass through the small holes of the spinneret during spinning, and the small hole spinneret is used for spinning woven fabrics and nonwoven fabrics Need for finer fibers. Crystal materials, such as polyester and polypropylene, not only pass through small holes smoothly during spinning, but also can be made finer by stretching after extrusion. The crystalline polymer is stretched to straighten the molecular chains, so that the fiber strength is improved and more stable; on the contrary, the stress generated by stretching amorphous resins, such as Ultem, shrinks when the fiber is heated, so the tension Stretching is in trouble. When extruding Ultem resin, the spinneret aperture must be as small as possible, but this will affect the running time of the spinneret assembly. GE's Ultem resin has a high melting temperature of 375-400 ° C, which is higher than that of conventional fiber-spinning resin materials, so there are fewer off-the-shelf equipment for processing this resin. Increasing the temperature of conventional heating equipment, such as electric heaters and hot oil channels, has unsafe factors. GE needs to find a collaborator who has the corresponding processing equipment and processing capacity for research and development and large-scale production. In early 2003, GE cooperated with an American company. This company specializes in processing thermoplastic polymers, including unusual materials such as Ultem resin, and produces synthetic fibers through the melt spinning process. 4. Optimize production process GE and its downstream manufacturers solved some technical problems and successfully spun out the first batch of Ultem fiber products First of all, the resin itself must be processed to make it more in line with the spinning process, especially to adapt to the tiny spinning eyelets for spinning finer fibers. Most of GE's resin products are used for injection molding production, and the processed parts are thicker than those produced by spinning. The sensitivity of the fiber drawing process has prompted GE to improve the resin performance and adapt to its processing-sensitive characteristics. Secondly, the equipment of downstream processing manufacturers must meet the special requirements of Ultem resin, such as high temperature resistance of 400 ℃, uniform temperature distribution, short residence time (resin material is in hot state), cannot exceed 10 minutes to prevent Degradation, low shear (also prevent degradation), low output (relative to polyester resin materials, etc.) to adapt to the higher viscosity of Ultem resin. Finally, optimize the processing process parameters, including temperature, production speed and pressure. The resin is processed according to the normal melt extrusion process. The slices are first dried, melted in the extrusion head, passed through the multifilament spinning component, stretched, and guided The reel is wound into a bobbin. GE and processors have a good grasp of the effect of spinning hole size on the final fiber diameter, controlling the relationship between melting temperature and melt strength and draw ratio to obtain the best fiber stability. The main performance indicators of fibers with a monofilament fiber degree of 10 denier are: Density (g / cm³) 1.27 Water absorption rate (?) 0.25 Oxygen Limited Index (LOI) 44 Strength (g / denier) 2.2 Elongation at break (?) 40 modulus (g / denier) 30.3 The initial research work was aimed at the California regulations that are about to be implemented, dedicated to the production of mattress barrier fabrics with a thickness of 10dpf fiber. They started to produce thicker fibers for simplicity and feasibility, and plan to gradually develop finer products for mass production. With the success of the small-scale pioneer test of 10-denier fibers, GE is confidently working with Restonic Mattress Corp to use Ultem fibers to manufacture new mattress materials that meet the TB 603 standard. Ultem fiber is made of Western nonwoven company flame retardant insulation material, placed between the foam core of the mattress and the outer fabric, and becomes Restonic's Ergo Sleep® mattress product-the first to meet California Wooden Hole Ruler, Purple Ruler Set, Jumbo Ruler Ningbo Hollan Stationery Co.,Ltd. , https://www.hollanstationery.com