Fast high-pressure tanning of animal skins by accelerated chromium sulphate complexation

Abstract

Abstract In the conventional leather production process, basic chromium sulphate (BCS) penetrates fully inside the collagen matrix during tanning and forms oligo-nuclear complexes that stabilize the skin structure during basification. Accelerated chromium sulphate complexation by basifying the BCS before full penetration leads to surface tanning and low leather qualities. Therefore, long processing times of 16 h for tanning and basification are common in modern tanneries. We used sodium hydrogen carbonate to basify BCS before penetration. However, instead of conventional tanning we performed CO2 tanning at 30 bar. The influence of accelerated chromium sulphate complexation on the leather quality was investigated. To estimate the structures of the formed chromium complexes, we considered the pH trend of the tanning solution during basification depending on the amount of basifying agent. The distribution of chromium oxide (Cr2O3) and the shrinkage temperature (Ts) in three different layers of the cross section were analysed. The analytics allowed the assessment whether the tanning agent penetrates through the whole cross section or adheres to the surface during CO2 tanning. We show that CO2-intensified tanning allows accelerated chromium sulphate complexation and a reduction in the tanning time from 16 to 4 h. The Cr2O3 is equally distributed, and Ts above 100 °C meets the standards of high-quality wet blue. However, the pH value of the tanning solution must not rise above 4.5 during basification. Otherwise, the Ts decrease dramatically. The feasibility of the process is demonstrated in a 1700-L drum, with a batch size of about 500 kg. The CO2-intensified tanning process has high potential to save time and chemicals and reduce emissions in industrial applications and is commercially competitive. Graphic abstract