The flammability of aerogel and PCM coated cotton fabric for firefighter's garment

The use of phase change material (PCM) in fire fighter's protective gear is a growing interest. However the most suitable PCM used are petroleum derived and flammable. In current approach nanoporous silica aerogel was used in conjunction of PCM to improvise its flame protection capability. Fabric samples were coated with/without aerogel or PCM and the ease of ignition of coated samples was investigated. It has been found that incorporation of aerogel provides better heat resistance, reduces ignition and slows down the flame propagation. Finally the air permeability of the samples was also analysed and found that Aerogel has negative impact on air permeability of the coated fabric