1. Fireproofing polymer materials

1.1 Polymer combustion

An organic polymer is a material with a high concentration of carbon and hydrogen, elements well known for their reductive behavior. Each polymer therefore represents a potential fuel under certain conditions, namely high temperature and the presence of an oxidizing element.

The combustion of polymeric materials can be broken down into two stages (figure 1 ): the first stage consists of the thermal degradation of the polymer. This is defined as a complex physico-chemical process of oxidation in response to heating by an external heat flux