Studies on development of nano feel modifiers and their evaluation in leather making

Abstract

The leather industry occupies a prominent position in the Indian economy due to its substantial export earnings and growth. Demand for leather goods is growing, but it is criticizing for its severe environmental impact, which drives many researchers to look for sustainable alternatives. Leather manufacturers are constantly innovating to return back the original smart properties of the skin to the leather. While the process of tanning contributes to the stabilization of the skin matrix against putrefaction, the whole hosts of aesthetic properties are provided through the use of a combination of chemicals, classified under the categories of retanning agents (polymers), fatliquors (self-emulsified oils), dyes and feel modifiers. Variation in the chemical input leads to poor uptake by the leather matrix, which in turn un-expectable levels of emission from the post-tanning process. Recently, the research interest has been directed towards incorporating nanotechnology into industrial applications, which enables the industry to meet stricter legislation regarding environmental safety. Particularly the process of dyeing depends on the type of substrate and the nature of dye. Most of the chrome tanned leathers are dyeing by using anionic dyes for good penetration and fixation. This charge based interactions will limit the application of other types of dyes (basic, reactive, and direct), even though the dye possesses excellent dyeing characteristics. Thus, there is a growing demand for the development of new dyeing agent, should produce dyed crust irrespective of surface charge of tanned leather. newline