BASF and THOR GmbH combine their expertise in non-halogenated flame retardant additives to provide customers with comprehensive solutions to improve the sustainability and performance of specific plastic compounds and to meet stringent fire safety requirements. Flame retardancy is an essential element of plastic parts or composites commonly used in transportation, construction, household and industrial applications, as accidental heat and flame exposure can cause severe damage and endanger life. The growing demands of the global construction and automotive industries, coupled with stricter fire BASF and THOR GmbH combine their expertise in non-halogenated flame retardant additives to provide customers with comprehensive solutions to improve the sustainability and performance of specific plastic compounds and to meet stringent fire safety requirements. Flame retardancy is an essential element of plastic parts or composites commonly used in transportation, construction, household and industrial applications, as accidental heat and flame exposure can cause severe damage and endanger life. The growing demands of the global construction and automotive industries, coupled with stricter fire safety standards, will greatly influence the demand for sustainable flame retardant chemicals. Experts at THOR and BASF's plastic additives specialists have been collaborating for years to develop complex solutions to meet the demanding flame retardancy specifications, with a focus on alternatives to halogen-containing additives.

Both are active members of the Phosphorus, Inorganic and Nitrogen Flame Retardants Association (PINFA) and work closely together to provide sustainable polymer systems that can withstand ignition and flame propagation over their service life. The combined expertise in flame retardant additives informs customers and end users, highlighting the synergistic advantage of BASF's halogen-free flame retardant Flamestab® with THOR's phosphonate AFLAMMIT® technology for polyolefins, which is often a challenging flame retardant application.、

Armin Eckert, Head of High Performance Chemicals at THOR, says: "A comprehensive and multifaceted evaluation of additive solutions is critical to shorten time to market. The closer the formulation we recommend is to the end user's requirements, the shorter the development time and cost for our customers. At THOR, we are constantly working to improve our flame retardants and their performance in the required plastic compounds. Depending on the market needs, there are a number of fire safety standards available to test our own developed flame retardant formulations. As a service, our project partners, such as BASF, provide us with newly formulated plastic films, moulding or extrusion samples for evaluation of performance."

"Providing excellent fire safety for plastic components while maintaining other properties such as mechanical properties and light stability is a real challenge," said Dr. Achim Sties, Senior Vice President, BASF High Performance Chemicals Europe. "BASF's technical experts are working hard to provide solutions to meet customer requirements and to respond with cost-effective and sustainable technical solutions using our strong experience and network. Together with THOR, we are focused on a technology portfolio that helps shorten the formulation or process owners' journey to their flame resistance goals and effectively advance certification in a complex regulatory and testing environment."