Crosslinked flame retardant thermoplastic elastomer gels

1. A crosslinked flame retardant thermoplastic elastomer gel comprising:

a first set of components; the first set of components comprising

a char catalyst at 50 wt % to 80 wt % of the first set of components,

a char former at 10 wt % to 25 wt % of the first set of components, the char former being selected from the group consisting of a polyol, a polysaccharide, an aminoplast, tris(hydroxyethyl)isocyanurate (THEIC), and mixtures thereof; and

a second set of components, the second set of components comprising

as the sole SEBS material a maleic anhydride-modified SEBS at 2.0 wt % to 4.0 wt % of the second set of components; and

a softener oil at 70 wt % to 98 wt % of the second set of components;

the first set of components being between 30 wt % and 50 wt % and the second set of component being between 50 wt % and 70 wt % of the gel, and the maleic anhydride-modified SEBS of the second set of components being the sole SEBS material in the gel, said gel being a soft gel suitable for use as a sealant.

2. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the second set of components further comprises a blowing agent at 0 wt % to 25 wt % of the first set of components, the blowing agent being selected from the group consisting of melamine, melamine cyanurate, melamine borate, melamine phosphate, and melamine derivatives, and combinations thereof.

3. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the char catalyst is 60 wt % to 75 wt % of the first set of components.

4. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the char catalyst is an ammonium polyphosphate.

5. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 4 wherein the ammonium polyphosphate is a coated ammonium polyphosphate.

6. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the char former is present at about 20 wt % of the first set of components.

7. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the char former is pentaerythritol.

8. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the second set of components further comprises at least one stabilizer at 1.0 wt % to 3.0 wt % of the second set of components.

9. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the maleic anhydride-modified SEBS has a maleation level of between 1.0 wt % and 3.0 wt %.

10. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the second set of components further comprises a styrenic block copolymer at 5.0 wt % to 10 wt % of the second set of components.

11. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the softener oil is a white mineral oil.

12. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the softener oil is a polyalpha olefin.

13. The crosslinked flame retardant gel of claim 1 wherein the gel has flame retardancy sufficient to pass the UL-94 test.

14. A method for making a crosslinked flame retardant thermoplastic elastomer gel comprising:

providing a first set of components, the first set of components comprising:

a char catalyst, and

a char former,

providing a second set of components, the second set of components comprising:

as the sole SEBS material a maleic anhydride-modified SEBS, the maleic anhydride-modified SEBS is 2.0 wt % to 4.0 wt % of the second set of components; and

a softener oil; and

combining the first set of components with the second set of components under conditions sufficient to form a crosslinked polymer gel, wherein the maleic anhydride-modified SEBS of the second set of components being the sole SEBS material in the gel, said gel being a soft gel suitable for use as a sealant.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the char catalyst is 50 wt % to 80 wt % of the first set of components.

16. The method of claim 14 , wherein the char former is 10 wt % to 25 wt % of the first set of components.

17. The method of claim 14 , wherein the blowing agent is 10 wt % to 25 wt % of the first set of components.

18. The method of claim 14 , wherein the softener oil is 70 wt % to 98 wt % of the second set of components.

19. A crosslinked flame retardant thermoplastic elastomer gel comprising:

(1) a first set of components, the first set of components comprising

(a) a char catalyst at 50 wt % to 75 wt % of the first set of components, wherein the char catalyst is a coated ammonium polyphosphate,

(b) a char former at 15 wt % to 25 wt % of the first set of components, wherein the char former is pentaerythritol, and

(c) a blowing agent at 10 wt % to 25 wt % of the first set of components, wherein the blowing agent is melamine; and

(2) a second set of components, the second set of components comprising

(a) as the sole SEBS material a maleic anhydride-modified SEBS at 2.0 wt % to 4.0 wt % of the second set of components; and

(b) a softener oil at 70 wt % to 98 wt % of the second set of components, wherein the softener oil is a polyalpha olefin;

(c) at least one stabilizer at 1.0 wt % to 3.0 wt % of the second set of components, and

the first set of components being between 30 wt % and 50 wt % of the gel,

the second set of component being between 50 wt % and 70 wt % of the gel, and

the gel having flame retardancy sufficient to pass the UL-94 test.