Flammability characteristics of chemical treated woven hemp fabric reinforced vinyl ester composites

In the present work, the treatments using sodium hydroxide, flame retardant chemical and combination of both sodium hydroxide and flame retardant changed the physical properties thus reduced the mechanical properties of woven hemp fabric and fabricated composites. However, the treatments increased the fire retardant properties of fabricated composites as indicated by the burning tests, thermogravimetry analyses and limiting oxygen index tests. An assessment based on woods and engineered wood products have shown that the fabricated composites are suitable to be used for building infrastructure materials as an alternative to wood products.