Engineering Sb2MoO6-decorated C3N4 nanoflakes for improving flame retardancy, smoke suppression and mechanical strength of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene

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To address the trade-off between flame retardancy and mechanical strength of acrylonitrile butadiene-styrene (ABS), the Sb 2 MoO 6 -modified graphitic carbon nitride (CN-AM) nanoflakes with different mass ratios of Sb 2 MoO 6 (AM) to graphitic carbon nitride ( g -C 3 N 4 ) were successfully prepared in this work. When the mass ratio of g -C 3 N 4 to AM is 100:10, the resultant CN-AM1 nanosheets can be evenly distributed within ABS at different addition amounts. Due to the physical barrier effect of the well-dispersed CN-AM1, the ABS/(CN-AM1) composites show well-maintained initial decomposition temperatures (368-375°C) and increased char residues (up to 2.72 wt% at 700°C) relative to pure ABS. The addition of CN-AM1 also brings about the enhanced tensile strength due to its rigid nanosheet structure, and the tensile strength of ABS/(CN-AM1)15 with 15 wt% of CN-AM1 reaches 76.4 MPa, which is increased by 18.8% compared with ABS. During combustion, the degradation products of CN-AM1 can function in the condensed phase to suppress the heat release and smoke generation, as confirmed by 62.5% and 49.7% reductions in peak heat release rate (PHRR) and peak smoke production rate (PSPR) of ABS/(CN-AM1)15 relative to ABS. The limiting oxygen index (LOI) and vertical combustion (UL-94) classification of ABS/(CN-AM1)15 are up to 28.9% and V-0, demonstrating satisfactory flame retardancy. Thus, this work delivers an effective design strategy for enhancing flame retardancy, thermal stability and mechanical strength of ABS by well-designed nanoflakes.