An eco-friendly method for short term preservation of skins/hides using Semecarpus anacardium nut extract

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international 2013-09, Vol.20 (9), p.6324-6330
• Main Authors: Iyappan, Kuttalam, Ponrasu, Thangavel, Sangeethapriya, Vilvanathan, Gayathri, Vinaya Subramani, Suguna, Lonchin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anacardium; Animals; Antibacterial activity; Antimicrobial agents; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Chemical oxygen demand; Chloride; Collagen; Curing; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Effluents; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental studies; Gamma rays; Goats; Hydrocarbons; Industrial research; Industrial wastes; Leather & leather products; Methods; Moisture content; Nuts; Nuts - chemistry; Plant extracts; Plant Extracts - chemistry; Pollution; Pollution load; Preservation; Putrefaction; Research Article; Salt; Salts; Semecarpus - chemistry; Semecarpus anacardium; Skin; Sodium; Studies; Tannery wastes; Tanning - methods; Total dissolved solids; Waste Water Technology; Water content; Water Management; Water Pollution Control
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-013-1683-0

Preservation or curing of hides and skins is performed as the primary step of leather processing. Common salt is employed as the conventional agent for curing purpose. Use of salt enhances the pollution load of tannery effluent which becomes highly contaminated with increased total dissolved solids and chlorides. To overcome this hurdle, researchers are in constant search of alternative preservation techniques which are either totally void of salt or use only a meager amount of salt. In the present study, we had explored the possibility of using Semecarpus anacardium nut extract as an alternative to salt for the curing process by assessing different parameters like hair slip, putrefaction odor, volatile nitrogen content, moisture content, bacterial count, and shrinkage temperature in comparison to the salt curing method. The antibacterial property of the plant extract was also investigated. The results obtained substantiated that the nut extract of S . anacardium effectively could preserve the skins for more than a month, by its antibacterial activity along with the dehydrating property of acetone.