Tanning Process Research Articles

Utilization of Tannery Flesh Waste for Production of Sustainable Leather Coating Substance

The leather tanning industry is one of the most polluting industries because it generates a gigantic amount of solid, liquid, and gaseous waste. Solid wastes are raw trimmings, fleshings, chrome shavings, buffing clouds of dust, and keratin wastes. Flesh wastes are generated from tanneries during leather processing, especially in sheep liming. These skin-flesh wastes from tanneries contain significant fat content, which is being wasted and dumped in open areas or at dumping sites. As a result, this flesh waste disposal has created a major environmental problem. This research aims to extract a sustainable functional substance that can be used for imparting aesthetic properties (polishing) to a leather product. In this research, a calculated amount of flesh waste was washed, de-limed, and cut into small pieces for solvent extraction of fat using the Soxhlet apparatus and hexane as solvent. Chemical analysis of the extracted fat showed a saponification value ranging from 189 to 192. These values indicate that extracted fat has a triglyceride, which can be used as a lubricant. However, when the extracted fat was applied to leather products like shoes, the surface showed an increase in their aesthetic properties (lustre, and gloss) giving excellent polishing results. The acid and saponification value, fat content, melting point, density, and viscosity of extracted fat showed stability making it a promising substance to impart functionality for leather products and usage as a polishing material. The extracted fat could replace synthetic, functional, and polishing materials overcoming the environmental challenges posed by the leather tanning process.

Comparative study of three vulcanization kinetic models for natural rubber/leather wastes composites

In this article, the effect of leather residues from chrome tanning on the vulcanization kinetics and rheometric properties of a natural rubber composite was evaluated using three kinetic models proposed in the literature. Leather wastes were classified according to their size as fine (smaller than 0.6 mm) or coarse (between 0.84 and 2 mm). Subsequently, they were chemically treated with a sodium bicarbonate solution to neutralize their acidic nature derived from the tanning processes. The composites studied in this paper were obtained using a torque rheometer. Fine and coarse leather wastes were added to a natural rubber matrix in proportions of 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 phr. The rheometric properties of all the composites were monitored during the curing process using a moving die rheometer. The addition of leather wastes increased the vulcanization time and stiffness of the composites; however, materials with fine leather wastes achieved lower vulcanization times than materials with coarse residues. The curves obtained during vulcanization rheometry were fitted to the three kinetic models, which made it possible to determine the kinetic parameters k and n. The fits for the three models were satisfactory based on the R-squared results. The values and trends of the kinetic parameters of each model were analyzed and related to the vulcanization phenomenon of each composite.

Hybrid nanoparticles emulsified vegetable oil as an environmentally friendly and sustainable leather fatliquoring agent

Introducing sustainability by a reduction in chemical input has added value to technology innovations, especially in the leather fatliquoring process. Major concern of sustainable leather fatliquoring process lies in factors like usage of natural oil, avoidance of hazardous substances and reduction in organic load to the environment. Due to their special features, such as their ease of preparation and environmental friendliness, Pickering emulsions and their applications have received significant attention in recent years. The present study reports a novel sustainable leather fatliquoring process by usage of hybrid particles (alumina coated with silica) stabilised Pickering emulsions as fatliquor instead of conventional sulphated oil based fatliquor. Eco fatliquoring agent with a particular choice of vegetable oil stabilised by hybrid alumina functionalised with silica (Al-O-SiO2)/ hybrid nanoparticles through Pickering emulsion was reported. During the post tanning process, the uses of this developed fatliquoring agent causes a reduction in the 30% of fatliquoring agent input and 40% reduction in dye input. The presence of alumina nanoparticles resulted in an immediate improvement of the abrasion resistance, softness, and physical properties of the crust leather. Utilizing hybrid particles (Al-O-Si) as a stabiliser readily improves the uptake of other post tanning chemicals. Thus, the prepared fatliquoring agent suitably softened the leather and significantly improved the mechanical properties, light fastness, and fullness with the reduction in the pollution load. To divulge the sustainability of the fatliquoring process, the sustainability analysis for the developed product was analyzed and presented. As compared to the conventional fatliquoring process the E factor of the experimental process was estimated to be lower (at a value of 0.25) which indicates minimum emissions. Based on cost estimation, leather fatliquoring is economically viable when using the prepared fatliquoring agent.

Novel Vegetable Tanning Techniques by Notholithocarpus densiflorus Extract and Fatliquoring with Indigenous Bovine Fat

The major technical challenge of vegetable tanning is to improve the higher wear-comfort, leather strength and water resistance efficiency in daily necessities of leather products, aiming as an alternative to chrome tanning. The demonstration has been made by indigenous bovine fat and Tanoak tree (Notholithocarpus densiflorus) bark-wood extract for usage in the tanning process as a new kind of stuffing tanning technique for the first time. The tannin content maximum efficiency was found at 34.25% for the bark and 28.5% for the wood sample. The presence of tanning content was characterized by using UV-visible absorption spectroscopy, FTIR spectroscopy and HPLC techniques. The characterization data revealed mainly catechol presence in the bark and pyrogallol presence in the wood. The stuffing techniques tanned leather showed a shrinkage temperature of 95±2 °C. Other physical properties such as tensile strength, tear strength, grain cracking load, and flexing endurance were comparable to conventional chrome-tanned leather. The cross-sectional morphology and thermal degradation of the tanned leathers were characterized by FE-SEM and TGA techniques which revealed a fat-coated compact structure of the leather fibres and decomposition at mainly 100 °C to 300 °C respectively. The average contact angle of a water droplet on bark-tanned leather was greater than 100° and wood-tanned 88° at the solid-liquid interface respectively, which indicated the low wettability of leather as a water resistance leather. These new kinds of stuffing techniques of vegetable tanning processes will help to replace the chromium tanning, sustainable tanning approach and save the environment.

Insights into the Development of Imine-Bond-Stabilized Organic Tanning and a Heteropolymer for the Post-Tanning Process─A Metal-Free Sustainable Leather Process

Organic tanning agents present a huge opportunity for developing tanning agents devoid of metals for sustainable and cleaner leather processing. An ideal tanning agent should be nontoxic, biocompatible, and cost-effective. Herein, we report an aromatic aldehyde-based modified vanillin synthesized by a single-step substitution reaction that can be used in the tanning process. Also, multifunctional polymers with three groups (carboxyl, long-chain hydrocarbon, and quaternary ammonium) are synthesized using hydroxyethyl methacrylate monomers, which can be used in the post-tanning process. The interaction of the modified vanillin derivative with collagen was studied at the molecular and fiber levels. Circular dichroism studies confirm no changes in the triple-helical conformation with increasing concentrations of modified vanillin. The crosslinking mechanism of collagen-modified vanillin by imine bond formation was confirmed through XPS. Further, the tanning input of modified vanillin was optimized, and 10% modified vanillin-tanned leather achieved 70 °C hydrothermal stability. For an integrated post-tanning process, the synthesized multifunctional polymer results in the increased uptake of dye and fatliquor. Further, the experimental leathers showed homogeneous pore size distribution, better fullness, and good mechanical strength. As expected, the pollution load of the experimental organic tanning process is significantly lesser than that of the chromium process. Thus, the present study overlays a greener metal-free leather-processing strategy.

Sustainable biomass as green and efficient crosslinkers of collagen: Case of by-products from six pomegranate varieties with global commercial interest in Morocco

Chrome tanning is the most common method used to produce leather, but its environmental and health impacts have necessitated the search for alternatives that have proved to be challenging. The circular economy, which uses biomasses to reduce and recover waste, is seen as a potential solution. In Morocco, fruit waste produced by juice processing industries is an untapped source of tannins that could replace chrome tanning in a more sustainable manner. In this study, a new eco-friendly tanning method based on vegetable biomass has been developed to reduce chromium-related environmental pollution and enhance leather performance. Tanning activities of extracts from six Moroccan pomegranate rind (PR) varieties were investigated, by studying their crosslinking with the insoluble collagen (IC) extracted from a sheep hide, under industrial tanning conditions. Herein, molecular distribution of crosslinkers extracts were carried out using gel exclusion chromatography to follow polymerization degree and crosslinking kinetics during tanning process. Between linear and logarithmic profiles, tannins and phenolics behave differently during the crosslinking depending on their molecular weight. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy exhibits the existence of inter and intramolecular interaction between IC functional groups and extract. X-Ray Diffraction analysis shows the influence of crosslinkers extracts into the triple helix structure of collagen. Scanning Electron Microscopy observations shows the fibrial size variations of crosslinked collagenous structure by varying the extract variety. Differential Scanning Calorimetry and thermogravimetric measurements revealed that the thermal stabilities were affected by the extracts varieties origins. Theoretical studies using Gaussian was used as a complementally tool to compare the reactivity and the stability of the major molecules that contributes in the crosslinking process. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to examine correlations between the crosslinked IC and PR extracts' analyzed properties. The data set's dimension was reduced to two components via PCA, which accounted for 69.79% of the observed variability.

Industrial redesign in leather tanning processes

The work was focused on evaluating and redesigning processes in the leather treatment production system. Leather treatment is a booming industry in the Andean regions of Latin America. In this sense, this study is based on a tannery located in Peru. This work is dedicated to developing an approach to improve processes based on optimizing personnel movements. The correct study of the planning of the areas where the actions that aim to obtain leather are executed using strategies that do not require expensive investments in tools or software since optimizing processes without making significant capital investments is sought.

Separation of Leather, Synthetic Leather and Polymers Using Handheld Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy.

Genuine leather is produced from animal skin by chemical tanning using chemical or vegetable agents, while synthetic leather is a combination of fabric and polymer. The replacement of natural leather by synthetic leather is becoming more difficult to identify. In this work, Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is evaluated to separate between very similar materials: leather, synthetic leather, and polymers. LIBS is now widely employed to provide a specific fingerprint from the different materials. Animal leathers processed with vegetable, chromium, or titanium tanning were analyzed together with polymers and synthetic leather from different origins. The spectra exhibited typical signatures from the tanning agents (Cr, Ti, Al) and the dyes and pigments, but also from polymer characteristic bands. The principal factor analysis allowed to discriminate between four main groups of samples representing the tanning processes and the polymer or synthetic leather character.

Effect of age and gender of animal on physicomechanical properties of Bangladeshi goat leather

Bangladeshi goat leather is worldwide renowned for its very special grain pattern. Due to the lack of proper management of animal husbandry, slaughtering, flaying, and preservation, the effect of an animal's age and sex on the final leather quality is still unknown. In this investigation, leather produced from goatskins of different ages and gender is assessed and compared. Twelve (12) freshly flayed goatskins (6 male and 6 female) of age 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 3.5, and 5.0 years were collected and processed for chrome-tanned shoe upper leather production. The physicomechanical properties e.g., tensile strength, elongation percentage, tearing strength, stitch-tear strength, ball bursting test and chrome content of the produced leathers were determined. Maximum tensile strength and chromium absorptions were 260.21 kg/cm2 and 31.48 g/kg respectively for 1.5 years of male goat skin. All the other properties gradually increased with animal age. Pearson’s correlation coefficient showed a high and significant correlation (p = 0.991) between the stitch-tear strength and elongation percentage. This study provides new knowledge about leather manufacturing outcomes depending on the age and gender of the raw skin and it will be helpful for the tanners to design a more informed tanning process based on the targeted usages.

Effective and cleaner Zr (IV) tanning process based on the inert-surface modification of skin collagen by PEGylated epoxy copolymers

Zirconium tanning agent, which is mainly composed of low-toxic tetravalent zirconium (Zr4+) salts, has been considered the most promising eco-friendly tanning agent for leather manufacturing, due to its comparable tanning performance with trivalent chrome. However, in the initial penetration stage of the zirconium tanning process, macromolecular multinuclear complexes are commonly formed because of the rapid coordination between hydrated Zr4+, which can easily cross-link with active groups of neighboring collagen fibers and thus block subsequently even penetration of zirconium tanning agents, resulting in surface over-tanning and ununiform tanning effects. Herein, to address the aforementioned issues of conventional zirconium tanning, inert-surface modification of collagen fibers was proposed by using PEGylated epoxy copolymers (PEGMA-co-GMA, defined as PPG) to pretreat bated hide, based on the covalent reactions and hydrogen-bond interactions of PPG with amino and carboxyl groups on collagen fibers, respectively. After modification, the surface reactivity of skin collagen was significantly reduced, which was able to delay the cross-linking interactions with zirconium tanning agents and thus promote uniform penetration. Simultaneously, the extra hydroxyls produced from the ring-open reactions of epoxy groups could also mitigate the excessive coordinated complexation of hydrated Zr4+, leading to efficient penetration of zirconium tanning agents. Compared with conventional zirconium tanning, research results showed that this inert-surface modification strategy could comprehensively improve the overall leather performance with both efficient and uniform tanning effects. Moreover, the resultant leather qualities, including thermal stability, physical and mechanical properties, and organoleptic properties, are very comparable with chrome-tanned leather. In addition, attributing to the reaction between collagen amino and PPG, the use of sodium chloride was avoided, resulting in a cleaner salt-free pickling process. Altogether, this inert-surface modification strategy represents a significant step forward for effective and cleaner tanning technology, which will accelerate the wide application of Zr(IV) in place of traditional chrome tanning agents.

Tannery: Environmental impacts and sustainable technologies

The tannery is an old industrial sector well-developed, plays an important role in the global economy, and has been heavily industrialized over the years in all countries. In developed countries, the legislation forces the tannery sector to develop clean and sustainable production. Due to the strict legislation policies, there was a continuous change in the distribution of the processing sites. There are two main reasons for this shift of the distribution, namely: 1) lower labour costs in some countries than in others; 2) fewer environmental restrictions in some countries than in others.The current tanning process is still mainly based on the traditional one, making use of chromium salts and being able to give leather of very high quality, despite its severe environmental drawbacks. Since its industrialization, the tannery has shown its heavy environmental impacts, caused by the operations and the processes done in the productive/supply chain, from the raw hides and skins to the final leather. Especially, this sector consumes a huge amount of water, which generates wastewater with high concentrations of pollutants (mainly, chromium(III), sodium sulfide, ammonium chloride, biocides, aldehydes, dyes, etc.). Emissions to the air and solid waste production are worth of consideration, too. At last, the health effects on the workers can give problems in the short as well as long term.Looking at the current distribution of the processing sites, most are in developing countries, where the legislation is still weak.Little amounts of leather derive from the green tannery, where the use of chromium is limited or completely avoided. The reason is the lower quality of the leather produced by the so-called “green technologies”.This paper analyzes the impacts deriving from the tannery industry due to the conventional chromium process. The reduced-chrome processes and green technologies are discussed, too, considering the role of nanotechnologies.

Sustainable leather making — An amphoteric organic chrome-free tanning agents based on recycling waste leather

Currently, globally, 90 % of the tannery is still tanned by using chrome, resulting in chromium-containing wastewater and chromium-containing solid waste that will cause serious harm to the environment. Under the pressure of environmental protection, on the one hand, the leather manufacturing industry should to dispose the current problem of chromium pollution, especially chromium-containing solid waste (chromium-containing waste leather (CCWL)), on the other hand, to popularize chrome-free tanning agent. Organic chrome-free tanning agents are the way forward for chrome-free tanning agents. However, organic chrome-free tanning agents exhibit several limitations with respect to their preparation and applications: The preparation process is not eco-friendly, and physicochemical properties of tanned crust leather are poor. More importantly, the leather tanned by an organic chrome-free tanning agent has low absorptivity of traditional anionic wet finishing materials, resulting in high total dissolved solids in tannery wastewater, which increased the difficulty of tannery wastewater treatment, and posed a potential threat to the environment. In this study, collagen polypeptide (CP) was extracted by using in situ dechromization and industrial trypsin from CCWL, followed by modification with ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE) to obtain an epoxy-terminated, biomass-based, amphoteric organic, chrome-free tanning agent (CP-EGDE) with a high isoelectric point of 5.16, and an epoxy value of 0.316 mol/100 g. CP-EGDE can be applied in the pickling-free and salt-free tanning processes to prepare wet white leather and the tannery wastewater with good degradability. The shrinkage temperature (Ts = 84.9 °C), grain flatness, fullness, softness, yellowing resistance, mechanical properties, absorptivity of traditional anionic fatliquor (88.4 %) and dyes (95.3 %) of CP-EGDE tanned leather exceeded those of commercial organic chrome-free tanning agents. This research considered both environmental protection and leather quality, especially greatly improving the absorptivity of traditional anionic wet finishing materials. CP-EGDE is expected to replace chrome tanning agents and has good application prospects.

Diagnóstico de salud ocupacional en la empresa de curtiembres Cueros JCG

Las pieles son consideradas un subproducto de la industria de la carne y mataderos, en donde, el 59% de las empresas del sector de curtiembres en Colombia, en su gran mayoría son microempresas las cuales no cuentan con los procesos y tecnología necesaria para dar un buen trato al animal y posteriormente al cuero (López y Hueza, 2018). De acuerdo con la Guía de Producción Limpia para el Sector Curtiembres de Bogotá (2017), los procesos de transformación de los cueros se caracteriza por su excesivo consumo de agua; a su vez el uso desproporcionado de productos químicos por tonelada de piel procesada, siendo el proceso de curtido el más contaminante. Las condiciones actuales del proceso de producción en la empresa Cueros JCG provocan un impacto ambiental negativo que afecta a la comunidad cercana a la empresa, así como bajos niveles de productividad y un alto riesgo de sanciones por el incumplimiento de las normas ambientales. En ese sentido se propone desde la comprensión de las condiciones actuales de la empresa, el diseño de una propuesta de mejora del proceso de recurtido que considere la incorporación de tecnologías limpias, de fácil acceso y que a su vez mejore las condiciones higiénicas en los puestos de trabajo en la empresa. Los resultados obtenidos en el presente trabajo evidenciaron que, el 75% de los riesgos afectan a la salud y la vida, el 17.1% están relacionados con el contacto y/o inhalación con productos químicos como pinturas, disolventes, anticorrosivos y el 8.6% tienen que ver con condiciones no idóneas de orden y aseo.

EFFECT OF LEATHER INDUSTRIAL EFFLUENT ON THE GERMINATION AND SEEDLING GROWTH OF SELECTED MEDICINAL PLANTS

This study evaluated the effect of leather industrial wastewater on the germination and seedling development of three medicinal plants. Andrographis paniculata, Emilia sonchifolia and Tridax procumbens are the medicinal plants that were selected for this study. Leather tanning includes different procedures which required large quantities of water so the amount of wastewater production by this industry is dangerously high. Different steps in the tanning process like liming and chrome tanning and rechromming produce an immense amount of effluent water which contains many hazardous chemicals. the chemical contents present in the tanning industrial effluent is potential to cause a serious threat to the ecosystem. The current study is aimed to evaluate the effect of leather industrial effluents on the germination and seedling development of three selected medicinal plants. Before the germination experiment, the effluent sample collected from a leather industry located at Pullepady, Kochi Eranakulam. Kerala, India was analyzed for different chemical and physical parameters. After the analysis of effluent water, it was used to conduct a seed germination experiment on 3 test plants. The concentrations of effluent used were 10%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% distilled water was used as control after 7 days of germination treatment germination percentage, Vigour index, and Phytotoxicity were calculated. The study reveals that even at the lowest concentration effluent sample adversely affects all three selected medicinal plants, and the negative effects intensified as the concentration of the effluent sample increases. At 100 % concentrations, all three test plants failed to germinate. Emilia sonchifolia is found to be most sensitive to tanning industrial effluent compared to Andrographis paniculata and Tridax procumbens.

The use of gambier as a tanner for fur-tanned rabbit skin

Rabbit fur skin is an exotic skin group and a by-product of slaughtering animal houses. The tanning process is a process for processing. This vegetable tanning can be used as vegetable tanning materials derived from materials obtained from nature. examples of vegetable tanners are gambier and mimosa. The material used for research was rabbit fur 15 pieces and gambier. The research used in this experiment was a completely randomized design with 5 treatments and 3 replications, and there were significant influences would be tested by Duncan’s Multiple Range Test Method. The treatment of this research used mimosa 4% (T0), gambier 3% (T1), 4% (T2), 5% (T3) dan 6% (T4). The result showed that using gambier as tanning material has a significant effect on tensile strength, tear strength, thickness, and flexibility. The best result of this research was T4 using 6% of gambier as a tanning agent. The tanned skin had 34,43 N/mm2 tensile strength, 8,25 Kg/cm, tear strength of 2,33 mm thickness, and 77,09% flexibility. The conclusion of this research is gambier can be added as a tanning agent for rabbit fur and gives good quality.

Review on the Water Quality Status of Lake Hawassa, Central Rift Valley Lakes, Ethiopia

Population growth, urbanization, and modernization are all contributing to sewage disposal issues and lake poisoning. The physical, chemical, and biological properties of water are typically used to describe its quality. Numerous factors, including BOD, temperature, electrical conductivity, nitrate, phosphorus, potassium, dissolved oxygen, etc., can be used to measure the quality of water. Because they pollute water or induce chronic poisoning in aquatic creatures, heavy metals like Pb, Cr, Fe, and Hg are particularly concerning. This review study stresses the Lake Hawassa water quality status using various research findings from both published and unpublished web documents. It was noted that the water from Lake Hawassa is extremely contaminated and may not meet the requirements for drinking and recreational uses, although with great care, it benefits aquatic life and irrigation. Pesticides were found in significant concentrations in Lake Hawassa's water, sediments, and fish species as a result of its exposure to effluent from industrial, urban, and agricultural runoff. As a result, the lake has become poisoned, threatening the aquatic ecosystem's biodiversity, which includes fish. Therefore, in order to protect Lake Hawassa's water supply, the government should implement the necessary controls to prevent the discharge of pollutants from agricultural fields, ceramics, textiles, plastics, urban storm water, leather tanning, and food processing sectors.

Application of an Integrated System of Thermal Pressure Hydrolysis/Membrane Techniques to Recover Chromium from Tannery Waste for Reuse in Hide Tanning Processes.

This paper presents the results of research on a new method of chromium recovery from solid waste generated during the tanning of raw hides. In the first stage, the shredded mixture of useless leather scraps is decomposed through thermal pressure hydrolysis (TPH) in nitric acid in appropriate process conditions. Then, the liquid product of this process (hydrolysate) is fractionated using membrane separation techniques. The microfiltration (MF) process enables the initial purification of the hydrolysate by concentrating the organic matter. On the other hand, the nanofiltration (NF) process enables a three-fold concentration of total chromium in the pre-purified hydrolysate. The total chromium concentrate prepared in the above manner was successfully used in the model tanning processes. These processes were carried out on pickled bovine hides, using a mixture of a commercial chromium tanning agent and chromium concentrate after nanofiltration. The reference sample was bovine hide traditionally tanned with a commercial chromium tanning agent. Based on the results of the physical and chemical analyses, it was found that the properties of hides tanned using chromium recovered from waste are similar to those of hides tanned traditionally using a commercially available chromium tanning agent. The industrial implementation of the developed tannery waste valorisation technology would enable transition from a linear economy to circular economy.

Citric Acid as an Effective and Safe Fixing Agent in Vegetable Tanning Process of Goatskin

Formic acid is known as a fixing agent in vegetable tanning process but this material is corrosive and irritant. Citric acid has the potential to be developed as an alternative fixing agent. This research aims to study the ability of citric acid as an alternative fixing agent in the tanning process, especially vegetable tanning of goatskin. The tanning process was carried out by the drum method. Pickled goatskins were tanned with mimosa and then fixed with citric acid. The concentration of citric acid varied from 1%; 1.5%; 2%; 2.5%; to 3%, to determine the optimum concentration. A fixing agent of 2% formic acid was used as a control. The results show that the control skin had similar characteristics to the treated skin. Physical properties of T4 have met the standard of SNI 0253-2009. It can be concluded that the optimal concentration of citric acid that can be used as an alternative fixing agent in vegetable tanning process of goatskin is 2.5%.

Use of potential bacterial strains to remove Hexavalent Chromium from an aqueous medium and the Periyar River sediments

Chromium is one of the most abundant metals in the earth's crust mined as chromites. Industries that widely use compounds containing chromium as Cr(III) in the tanning process generally release effluents with high chromium levels into natural water resources, frequently without appropriate effluent treatment. Though physical and chemical methods of chromium removal are adopted, the processes are expensive, use a lot of energy and generate secondary toxic waste. The removal of chromium by biological resources on the other hand is more environmentally friendly, less expensive, and lacks the release of secondary pollutants. The present study is aimed towards the assessment of the Cr(VI) reduction capability of two bacterial strains, Alcaligenes sp. (S11) and Listeria sp. (S18) used as a consortium. These bacterial strains were isolated from the Periyar river of Kerala, India. Batch mode studies were carried out by live bacterial cells and an integrated study was carried out to test the bacterial strains on chromium-contaminated water and sediments through bioreactor and column study respectively under optimized conditions. The phytotoxicity of the treated water was studied on black gram. In the bioreactor study, the maximum Cr(VI) reduction capacity of bacterial consortium (S11 and S18) was found to be 97%. The successive experiment for the toxicity of treated water on the black gram indicated that there was no toxicity in the growth parameters of the plant.

Study on the Amalgamation of Jute Fabric and Leather for Lifestyle Applications

ABSTRACT During the process of tanning, huge quantities of wastes are generated posing major environmental risk if not managed effectively. Therefore, sustainability has become a great challenge for the industry. To overcome the challenge, an attempt has been made to develop lifestyle products using a combination of jute fabrics and leather. For the study, three different types of jute fabrics S1, S2, and S3 of varying compositions were sourced and examined for physical, structural, and thermal properties. It has been observed that most of the physical properties like breaking strength, breaking elongation, seam strength, abrasion resistance, light fastness of S2 and S3 fabrics are comparable or even better than goat nappa leather while the performance of S1 was not appreciable. In addition, performance of S3 fabric is better over other fabrics in water absorption. It was evidenced from analysis that S2 and S3 fabrics which are blends of jute and cotton performed well compared to 100% jute fabric S1. Consequently, combination products were developed and these products will certainly be a major breakthrough during a time when country is facing huge pollution crisis.