Deliming with weak acids: Effects on leather quality and effluent

Effluent which has a high ammonium content is produced as a result of traditional deliming operation using ammonium salts. Ammonia is converted into nitrate by the nitrogen cycle in nature and ammonium salts discharged into natural water sources have toxic effects on living organisms.In this research weak acids were used to delime in studies on sheep skins to reduce the ammonium load that originates from deliming. Beside the deliming effect of acids, the N content of the resulting discharge water was determined and the effect of these methods on the quality of the leather was studied. The data obtained from the study were compared with the traditional deliming methods and standards.