Abstract
In order to understand the fire hazard of combustible materials used in the China’s high-speed train, pyrolysis behaviors of four typical seat cushion materials, including seat cushion fabric for first-class seats (SCFI), seat cushion fabric for second-class seats (SCFII), seat cushion foam (SCFO) and fire resisting blanket (FRB), were investigated based on the thermogravimetric (TG) analysis. TG experiments were conducted in wide heating rates from 5 to 40 K min−1 under nitrogen atmosphere, and kinetic parameters were estimated based on Kissinger method. Only one reaction appeared in the whole SCFI and SCFII pyrolysis process while two reactions for SCFO and FRB. All the materials can be fully decomposed when the temperature increases to 1060 K, except FRB, with more than 40% of the sample mass left in the crucible. What is more, the maximum mass loss rates of FRB at the three heating rates are much lower than that of the other three materials. Values of E a for the reaction of SCFI, SCFII, the first and second reaction of SCFO and the second reaction of FRB are roughly at the same level (189, 182, 206, 185 and 195 kJ mol−1, respectively). The first reaction of FRB has much lower values of E a and A, which shows that the first reaction of FRB is relatively easy to be triggered. But once it reacts, a slower reaction rate happens.
Similar content being viewed by others
Change history
20 August 2020
In the original version of the article, the order of funding program in the acknowledgement section was published incorrectly.
References
Rail transport in China. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_China. Accessed 27 May 2016.
Zhu J, Li XJ, Mie CF. Combustion performance of flame-ignited high-speed train seats via full-scale tests. Case Stud Fire Saf. 2015;4:39–48.
Peacock RD, Braun E. Fire tests of Amtrak passenger rail vehicle interiors. No. NBS/TN-1193 (1984).
Peacock RD, Braun E. Fire safety of passenger trains, phase 1. Material evaluation (cone calorimeter), No. NISTIR-6132 (1999).
White N. Fire development in passenger trains. Master Dissertation, Victoria University, Australia (2010).
Briggs P, Le Tallec Y, Sainrat A, Metral S, Messa S, Breulet H. Firestarr final report. Contract SMT4-CT 97-2164 (2001).
Fantozzi F, Laranci P, Bidini G. CFD simulation of biomass pyrolysis syngas vs. natural gas in a microturbine annular combustor. In ASME turbo expo 2010: power for land, sea, and air. American Society of Mechanical Engineers; 2010. p. 649–58.
Judd M, Pope M. Energy of activation for the decomposition of the alkaline-earth carbonates from thermogravimetric data. J Therm Anal Calorim. 1972;4(2):31–8.
Zsako J. Kinetic analysis of thermogravimetric data. J Therm Anal. 1996;46(6):1845–64.
Slopiecka K, Bartocci P, Fantozzi F. Thermogravimetric analysis and kinetic study of poplar wood pyrolysis. Appl Energy. 2012;97:491–7.
Chen R, Lu S, Li C, et al. Characterization of thermal decomposition behavior of commercial flame-retardant ethylene–propylene–diene monomer (EPDM) rubber. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2015;122(1):449–61.
Li KY, Huang X, Fleischmann C, et al. Pyrolysis of medium-density fiberboard: optimized search for kinetics scheme and parameters via a genetic algorithm driven by Kissinger’s method. Energy Fuels. 2014;28(9):6130–9.
Ahamad T, Alshehri SM. Thermal degradation and evolved gas analysis of thiourea-formaldehyde resin (TFR) during pyrolysis and combustion. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2011;109(2):1039–47.
Alshehri SM, Al-Fawaz A, Ahamad T. Thermal kinetic parameters and evolved gas analysis (TG–FTIR–MS) for thiourea–formaldehyde based polymer metal complexes. J Anal Appl Pyrol. 2013;101:215–21.
Ahamad T, Alshehri SM. Thermal degradation and evolved gas analysis of epoxy (DGEBA)/novolac resin blends (ENB) during pyrolysis and combustion. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2013;111(1):445–51.
Alshehri SM, Ahamad T. Thermal degradation and evolved gas analysis of N,N′-bis (2 hydroxyethyl) linseed amide (BHLA) during pyrolysis and combustion. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2013;114(3):1029–37.
Kissinger HE. Reaction kinetics in differential thermal analysis. Anal Chem. 1957;29(11):1702–6.
Glasstone S, Eyring H, Laidler KJ. The theory of rate processes. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1941.
Vyazovkin S. Model-free kinetics. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2006;83(1):45–51.
Martın-Gullon I, Esperanza M, Font R. Kinetic model for the pyrolysis and combustion of poly-(ethylene terephthalate) (PET). J Anal Appl Pyrol. 2001;58:635–50.
Saha B, Ghoshal AK. Thermal degradation kinetics of poly (ethylene terephthalate) from waste soft drinks bottles. Chem Eng J. 2005;111(1):39–43.
Pau DSW, Fleischmann CM, Spearpoint MJ, et al. Determination of kinetic properties of polyurethane foam decomposition for pyrolysis modelling. J Fire Sci. 2013;31:356–84.
Feih S, Boiocchi E, Kandare E, et al. Strength degradation of glass and carbon fibers at high temperature. In ICCM-17 17th international conference on composite materials. Proceedings (2009).
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge financial support sponsored by “the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFB1200403)” and “the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFB1200505)”.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Liang, J., Wang, B., Zhu, L. et al. Pyrolysis characteristic study on seat cushion materials of China’s high-speed train. J Therm Anal Calorim 130, 2331–2339 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-017-6509-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-017-6509-8