(1) Introduction :In this scenario, Leather is the most popular product and its

consumption is increasing day by day. There are many large companies

that make finished leather. And, MIRZA INTERNATIONAL LTD. is the
biggest company that I have ever seen and its leather is famous in all over
the world. In India, Leather industries give the employment of 2.5 million
people with an annual turnover of over US$ 11 billion. Before starting our
discussion, I want to clear one thing. Many people thinks that leather is
made by killing animals such as buffaloes, goats etc. but it is not true.
According to the data, India exported 2.4 million tonnes of beef and veal in
yr. 2015 and as we know skins/hides are byproducts for them. And, this
huge amount of skins/hides become the source of many harmful diseases
such as B virus, Avian Influenza etc. and need much area to decompose
skins/hides. So, The Leather Technologist had decided that they should
utilize the skins/hides for the good purpose and the result is in front of you.
Tanning and other finishing facilities generally convert raw hides
and/or skins into Leather, which is then finished and used to manufacture a
wide range of products. In this project, we will discuss each and every
process to make the finished leather and how to control pollution created
by
leather
industry.
Parts of the leather hide
The Back - this is the one piece that includes the butt and
shoulder areas, but not the belly. The best leather is near
the spine at the butt end.
The Butt it is the strongest and thickest of the hide, and
the best cut for firmer items such as belts.
The Side this is hide cut in half down the middle, and
will include the belly areas.
The Belly this is a stretchy softer leather of varying
thickness.
The Shoulder this is a softer area of the hide, often
used for making bags.
The whole process of making good quality of leather is divided
into mainly three stages. They are as follows -

 Pre Tanning (beamhouse operations)

Tanning
Post Tanning

Process steps for the production of leather from raw hides

MANUFACTURING PROCESS -

Major steps of manufacturing process are defined as under :-

(2) Hide and skin storage :(2.1) Curing -

Curing means temporary preservation of hides and

skins. It is not always possible to send the hides and skins to
tanneries after flaying because the sources of the collection and the
tanneries are not generally located in the same area. The time gap
between the flaying operation and start of tannery operations vary from one
to two months. If hides and skins are not cured just after flaying, they got
putrefied (decay of proteins and other hide materials due to bacterial
actions) within 2/3 days. This process is in slaughterhouse or where the
hides and skins is flaying.
Normally, there are many ways of curing such as

Curing by controlling temperature

Curing by pH control
Curing by using Toxic Materials
Curing by application of salt.

But, in all of this majority of hides and skins of the world are cured by the
application of common salt and the final cured materials are known as
wet salted hides and skins.
Recipe - In this method of curing the flayed hides are first washed in plain
water for 20 minutes to clean off the dung, dirt, blood etc. and then trimmed
off. Then, sufficient salt is sprinkled on the floor. The hide is then spreaded
on the salt with flesh side up. 40% salt on the weight of washed hide is
sprinkled on the flesh side and rubbed with hand.

(3) Pre Tanning : Desalting Drum - Just before soaking, the hides and skins
are passed through desalting drum. It removes the salt from the
cured hides and skins to the desired extent and this salt is
sell out to the slaughterhouse. Then, the hides and skins send out for the
soaking process.

(3.1) Soaking -

The first tannery operation is soaking. During

curing hides and skins lose large quantity of its physiological

content of water and unless the former regains this water during soaking
operation good quality of leather cant be produced. Therefore, the objects
of soaking are
a)
b)
c)
d)

To rehydrate the skin

To open up the contracted fibrous structure of the skin
To remove the curing salt in case of salted skins
To clean off surface filth

Recipe - First, weight out each and every hides and skins and put into the
drum (capacity: 100-200 hides at a time). Then, take 200% fresh water on
the weight of hides and skins in the drum. Add some soaking additives
include surfactants and enzyme preparations such as Basozym S20
(0.02% of the weight). After that, rotate the drum for 6-8 hours at 7-8 RPM.

(3.2) Liming -

After soaking the hides and skins are taken for

the next operation known as liming. In this operation the

soaked hides and skins are treated with milk of lime(calcium hydroxide)
with or without the addition of sharpening agents like sulphide, cynaides,
amines, markaptan etc. The objects of liming are mainly to
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

Remove the hairs, nails, hooves and other keratinous matters

Remove some of the interfibrillary soluble proteins like mucins etc.
Swell up and to split up the fibres to the desired extent
Remove the natural grease and fats
To bring the collagen(fibre) to a proper condition for satisfactory
tannage

During the liming operation the lime first enters the interspaces between
the fibre bundles and then surrounds each bundle to give a splitting action
and separating each fibre from other within the bundle. This process is
responsible for the removal of Epidermis Layer of the hides or skins.
Recipe First drain out all the soaked water by rotating the drum. And,
add new 100% fresh water in the drum and add lime (2.8% of the weight),
sodium sulphide (2.2%) and dehairing agents(0.024%) and rotate the drum
for 3-4 hours. Give the rest to the drum for 45-60 min. Then, add
degreasers(0.02%) in the drum and again rotate the drum for 1-2 hours.

 Lime Its chemical formula is Ca(OH)2. Lime is used to swell

the hides and skins.
Sodium Sulphide Its chemical formula is Na2S and its
hydrate is Na2S.9H2O. Sodium sulphide chemically destroys the
hairs on hides or skins.
Degreasers Degreasers help with the removal of natural fats
and greases from hides or skins.
Dehairing agents It increase the speed of removal of hairs.

Fleshing/Scraping machine - After liming, the hides or skins

will be fleshed by a scraping machine. This machine removes
the flesh layer of the hides/skins. Subsequently the defleshed
hide will be split by fleshing machine. Main waste generated
from this step is fleshings and scraps from the lower part of the
hides. Now, weight each and every hide and send to the
deliming process.

(2.3) Deliming -

After liming the unhaired and fleshed hides and

skins are known as pelts. The object of delimimg operation are

a) Removal of alkali from the pelt and the consequent deswelling of
fibres
b) Lowering of the liquor pH to the values used in the bating process.
Recipe - Take all the hides in the drum and fill the drum with water and
washed them by rotating the drum. Then, refill the drum with 100% fresh
water and add Ammonium sulphate(2.5% of the weight), add Eusapon
OD/OC(0.05%) and some amount of batting agent.

Test - Now, check the sample by take one of the hides from
the drum and the cut the small piece mainly from the belly side.
Then, fall some drops of phenolphthalein(pH= 8-10) on the
lateral face and press the hide longitudinally. If it shows pink
color, it means sample in the de-liming drum has high pH value
and the hides/skins are not suitable for the further processes.
For this either rotate the drum for some time(approx. 1-2 hours)

or add some amount of ammonium sulphate in it. And, if it

shows colorless then it means sample is ready to send hides in
the further process.

(2.4) Pickling -

The treatment of de-limed pelts with a solution of

acid
and salt is known as pickling. This is the most important
and essential operation prior to mineral tannage, but stock selected for
vegetable tannage generally does not require such acid-salt pretreatment.
The main object of this pickling operation is to bring the de-limed pelt to
a required degree of acidity so that the subsequent tannery
operations can be smoothly and scientifically controlled and to
preserve them for up to two years. This is done to bring down the pH of
collagen to a very low level so as to facilitate the penetration of mineral
tanning agent into the substance. The common salt(sodium chloride)
penetrates the hide twice as fast as the acid and checks the ill effect of
sudden drop of pH.
Recipe - For this process, take all de-limed pelts in the pickling drum and
fill the drum with 80% of fresh water. Then, add salt (approx. 6%) and
sodium formate(0.5%) and allow the drum to rotate for approx. 30 minutes.
Now, add previously dilute formic acid(0.2%) and again rotate the drum for
30 minutes then add previously dilute sulfuric acid(2.25%) because formic
acid and sulfuric acid are very strong acid so it is necessary to dilute before
add in the drum otherwise it harms the pelt and collagen fibres. After that,
close the nozzle of the drum and rotate the drum for 3-4 hours.
Test - This test is done after the pickling and it is called pickle
test. For this test you will pull out one hide from the pickling
drum and cut 3-4 pieces mainly from belly side. Then, hold all
the pieces and put some drops of Bromocresol green(pH=
3.5-5.2)(yellow to blue) on the lateral face. If yellow colour
appears on the lateral side then, it means pickling process is
completed properly. Otherwise, green colour strips are formed
on the lateral face then, either rotate the drum for some time or
add some amount of sulfuric acid and rotate properly.

(4) Tanning :-

Tanning is the process which converts pre-tanned

hide into leather. Tanning allows stabilization of the collagen
fiber through a cross-linking action. The tanned hides and

skins are tradable intermediate products (wet-blue). Tanning

agents can be categorized in three main group s namely
(a) Mineral (chrome) tanning agents
(b) Vegetable tanning agents
(c) Alternative tanning agents (e.g. syntans, aldehydes and oil
tanning agents)
About 90 percent of leathers are tanned with salts of chromium (in
its trivalent form), especially chromium (III) sulfate. The vegetable
tanning process is not an alternative to the chrome tanning process, as the
two processes produce different products.

(a) Chrome tanning -

Chromium sulfate ([Cr(H2O)6]2(SO4)3)

has long been regarded as the most efficient and effective tanning
agent. Chromium(III) compounds of the sort used in tanning are
significantly less toxic than hexavalent chromium. The pH must be
very acidic when the chromium is introduced to ensure that the
chromium complexes are small enough to fit in between the fibers
and residues of the collagen. Once the desired level of penetration
of chrome into the substance is achieved, the pH of the material is
raised again to facilitate the process. This step is known as
basification. In the raw state, chrome-tanned skins are blue, so
are referred to as wet blue. Chrome tanning is faster than
vegetable tanning (less than a day for this part of the process) and
produces a stretchable leather which is excellent for use in
handbags and garments.
Recipe - Now, the hides are ready for tanning. Workers load
them into a huge rotating drum. The drum is filled with the
tanning solution, made of B.C.S.(basic chromium sulphate)(810%) in water. The hides rotate in the tanning solution for 2-4
hours. The chemical action of the chrome transforms the hide
into leather. Dyes in the solution also give the leather its colour.
Then, add some chemicals that improve the softness of the
final leather and blancorol BA(0.7%) for basification and again
rotate for 3-4 hours. This process is very important because it
decides the quality of the final leather.

 pH test - The simple criteria for this test is that the pH of the
chrome liquor should be lie between 3.6-4.

(b)

Boil test - This is very important test. For this test, cut out the
square piece(10cmx10cm) from the hide and make layout on
paper then tie the string at the center of the square piece and
hold string from another end. Now, dip the piece in the hot
water and wait for a minute. Then, place this piece on the
previous layout. If it shrinks or expands from the original size or
it become tough then it means boil test is failed. So, rotate the
drum for some time. Otherwise. It is pass.
Vegatable tanning - Vegetable tanning uses tannins (a
class of polyphenol astringent chemicals), which occur naturally in
the bark and leaves of many plants. Tannins bind to the collagen
proteins in the hide and coat them, causing them to become less
water-soluble and more resistant to bacterial attack. The process
also causes the hide to become more flexible. The primary barks
processed in bark mills and used in modern times are chestnut,
oak, redoul, tanoak etc. Hides are stretched on frames and
immersed for several weeks in vats of increasing concentrations of
tannin. Vegetal-tanned hide is not very flexible and is used for
luggage, furniture, footwear, belts, and other clothing accessories.

(5) Post-tanning :-

All the previous steps to apply any leather.

Only in the finishing is the leather transformed into the specific

product of patent leather.

(5.1) Draining, samming and settling

After tanning, leathers are drained, rinsed, and either
hung up to age or unloaded into boxes and subsequently
sammed to reduce the moisture content before further
mechanical action. Setting (working over the grain surface of
wet leather to remove excess water, to eliminate wrinkles and

granulations, to give the leather a good pattern and to work out

stresses so that the leather lies flat) may be carried out.

(5.2) Splitting
The function of the splitting operation is to cut through
skins/hides or leathers at a set thickness. If the h i de s / s k i n s
a r e s u f fi c i e n t l y t h i c k , s p l i t t i n g ca n yi e l d a gr a i n s p l i t
a n d a f l e s h sp l i t t ha t m a y bo t h be processed into
finished leather. Although splitting can be performed before
tanning, after tanning, or after drying, it is usually performed
after tanning.

(5.3) Shaving
Shaving is undertaken to achieve an even thickness
throughout tanned or crusted leather. Shaving is carried
out when splitting is not possible or when minor adjustments to
the thickness are required.
In shaving machine, there is a rotating knife
which peel the flash side of the leather and a rotating knife
which continuously sharps knife for uniform peel. Mainly, there
are four motors used
(i) A motor that rotate the cylinder of stone,
(ii) rotate the cylinder containing knife,
(iii) third motor rotate the cylinder that move the hides
in/out the machine,
(iv) the fourth motor move the stone cylinder horizontally.

(5.4) SemiChroming Here the vegetable tanned leathers are given chrome
treatment. Since chrome leathers are empty and cationic
chrome complexes react with loose tannins to form insoluble
compounds, the first object is to move the loose tannins from
vegetable tanned leathers by scouring processes. Tanners
generally do this with borax, but better results can be obtained
by following methods.
Recipe The vegetable tanned leathers are first

superficially stripped with 2 to 3 % mollescal-C and 1 to 2 %

sodium sulphite
(Na 2SO3) in a drum at 30 to
O
35 C. The goods must then be rinsed thoroughly or better still,
undergo an after treatment with 2% Fur scouring agent LA
powder or similar materials.
Finally, the goods are chrome tanned with cationic
chrome leaker with a lower quantity of chrome than is require for
achieving leathers which stand for boiling test. Exceptionally,
soft leathers can be obtained by adding the chromium salts
slowly and in small portions, which operations may be prolonged
to 12 to 16 hrs.

(5.5) Neutralisation Neutralisation reduction of the acidity of leather after tanning

with compounds of chromium, aluminum or zirconium, intended
to fix the tanning substance with albumin and create favorable
conditions for subsequent dyeing of the leather. Before
neutralization, the hide is washed with warm water, and the
excess acid is then neutralized with weak alkaline reagents
(sodium bicarbonate and ammonium sulfate, sodium carbonate
and ammonium sulfate). Leather tanned with compounds of
zirconium is neutralized with hexamethylenetetramine or
sodium sulfite. The waste products of neutralization are
removed by subsequent rinsing.
Recipe - 300-500% water at 35 oC. 1% Neutrigan or 2% Tamol
GA or Basyntan F.C. Drum for 40 minutes and then rinse for 15
minutes at 30 oC.

(5.6) Dyeing
Dyeing is performed to produce colors in hides / skins. Typical
dyestuffs include water-based acid dyes. Basic and reactive
dyes are less commonly used. A wide range of dyestuff is
available with different characteristics and physico-chemical
resistances (e.g. to light, PVC migration, sweat migration,
among others).

(5.7) Fatliquoring Fatliquoring is the

process by which leathers are lubricated
to
achieve product-specific
characteristics
and
to
reestablish the fat content lost in the previous procedures. The oils used
may be of animal or vegetable origin, or may be synthetic products based
on mineral oils. Stuffing is an old technique used mainly for heavier
vegetable-tanned leather. Sammed leathers are treated in a drum with a
mixture of molten fat. The retanned, dyed, and fatliquored leathers
are then acidified by formic acid for fixation and usually washed
before being aged to allow the fat to migrate from the surface to the inside
of the pelt.