Editing Metalloid (section)

===Flame retardants===
Compounds of boron, silicon, arsenic, and antimony have been used as [[flame retardant]]s. Boron, in the form of [[borax]], has been used as a textile flame retardant since at least the 18th century.<ref>[[#LeBras|Le Bras, Wilkie & Bourbigot 2005, p.&nbsp;v]]</ref> Silicon compounds such as silicones, [[silane]]s, [[silsesquioxane]], [[silica]], and [[silicate]]s, some of which were developed as alternatives to more toxic [[halogenation|halogenated]] products, can considerably improve the flame retardancy of plastic materials.<ref>[[#Wilkie|Wilkie & Morgan 2009, p.&nbsp;187]]</ref>
Arsenic compounds such as [[sodium arsenite]] or [[sodium arsenate]] are effective flame retardants for wood but have been less frequently used due to their toxicity.<ref>[[#Locke1956|Locke et al. 1956, p.&nbsp;88]]</ref> Antimony trioxide is a flame retardant.<ref>[[#Carlin|Carlin 2011, p.&nbsp;6.2]]</ref> [[Aluminium hydroxide]] has been used as a wood-fibre, rubber, plastic, and textile flame retardant since the 1890s.<ref>[[#Evans|Evans 1993, pp.&nbsp;257–28]]</ref> Apart from aluminium hydroxide, use of phosphorus based flame-retardants – in the form of, for example, [[organophosphate]]s – now exceeds that of any of the other main retardant types. These employ boron, antimony, or [[halogenated hydrocarbon]] compounds.<ref>[[#Corbridge|Corbridge 2013, p.&nbsp;1149]]</ref>