Effect of fatliquor level on the physical quality of Indonesian rabbit fur leather

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of fatliquor level on the physical quality of Indonesian rabbit fur leather. A total of 15 sheets of Indonesian local rabbit leather (30 cm long and 26 cm wide) were randomly divided into 5 treatments with 3 replicates. The five treatments were level of fatliquor: 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25%. In this study, the physical quality of rabbit fur leather was measured in tension, elongation, tensile strength, and tear strength. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance followed by Duncan’s New Multiple Range Test. Level of fatliquor affects (P<0.05) softness, elongation, tensile strength, and tear strength of rabbit fur leather. The use of fatliquor up to 20% increased the rabbit leather softness and elongation, but there was a decrease at 25%. The use of 10% fatliquor produces the highest tensile strength. The highest tear strength resulted from the use of fatliquor levels of 5% and 15%. It is concluded that using 20% fatliquor on the fatliquoring process of rabbit fur leather tanning produces the best physical quality.