Fire Safety Science Digital Archive

The production of oxides of carbon from the thermal and thermal-oxidative decomposition of a polyester and polyether flexible polyurethane foam, parent polyols and yellow smoke has been studied at temperatures between 200 and 1000 C by gas chromatography. In inert atmospheres virtually the entire oxygen content of each foam is released as total oxides of carbon at 1000C. At this temperature, the polyester foam releases 260 and 145 mg/g of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide respectively whereas the polyether foam releases 400 and 42 mg/g respectively. Under oxidative conditions the maximum carbon monoxide yields (295 and 440 mg/g for the polyester and polyether foams respectively) are generated at 600C whereas the maximum carbon dioxide yields are released at 1000C (960 and 715 mg/g for the polyester and polyether materials).