Leather and Footwear Journal

Volume 12, no 1

Contents
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Effects on Colour Characteristics of Full Chrome and Semi Chrome Leathers: Comparison of Natural and Artificial Ageing
- Pages 5-18
  Govindan DEVIKAVATHI*, Rajangam VENBA, Victor JOHN SUNDAR, Chellappa MURALIDHARAN
  - Leather Process Technology Division, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Central Leather Research Institute, Chennai, India, email: devikavathi@gmail.com, fax: 0091-44-24430267
  ABSTRACT. Dyeing plays an important role in the final appearance and aesthetics of leather. Many chemicals and auxiliaries employed in leather processing critically influence the ageing and colour characteristics of the leather. Depending on the nature of the physical operations carried out and chemical interactions made, leather undergoes noticeable change during ageing. The colour also changes on exposure to extremely high temperature or extensive exposure to sunlight. Hence it is important to monitor the colour characteristics induced by natural ageing and procedures using artificial ageing. Thus the objective of the study is to evaluate the effects of artificial and natural ageing conditions on the colour characteristics of full chrome and semi chrome suede leather. Three different classes of dyes, namely acid, direct, metal complex dye (1:1 & 1:2) and three different types of fatliquors were chosen for the study. Artificial ageing was carried out by thermal method for 24 and 72 hrs at 80°C to study the colour changes. The samples were subjected to thermal ageing. Simultaneously the samples were naturally aged for 15 months at atmospheric temperature conditions. To quantify the colour changes that may occur because of accelerated and natural ageing, the CIE L*a*b* procedure was used. It has been shown that similar effects were observed in artificial and natural ageing of full chrome suede leathers; simultaneously, significant changes are observed in natural ageing of semi chrome leathers.
  
  KEY WORDS: ageing, colour, dyes, leather, suede, spectrophotometer
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Environmental Legislation Database for the Leather and Footwear Industry
- Pages 19-26
  Gabriela MACOVESCU*, Sergiu Adrian GUTA
  - INCDTP Division Leather and Footwear Research Institute, Bucharest, email: icpi@icpi.ro
  ABSTRACT. International governmental and non-governmental organizations have emerged in the past years, whose objective is environmental research and enforcing measures to prevent or solve environmental imbalances due to pollution through binding legal measures in the form of treaties, conventions, directives, regulations, laws etc. The leather industry, generating pollutant emissions in waters, soils and in the atmosphere faces current environmental regulations at both national and European scale. Setting up a database regarding national and European legislation on environmental regulations, their harmonization, as well as the degree of implementation in the leather industry makes it easier for experts. The paper presents the database architecture, minimal technical requirements, access and display of records, searching and administrating this database.
  
  KEY WORDS: database, leather, legislation
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Effect of Leather Finishing on the Colour Uniformity and Batch Homogeneity of Leathers
- Pages 27-38
  Mehmet Mete MUTLU, Bahri BASARAN*, Behzat Oral BITLISLI, Arife Candas ADIGUZEL ZENGIN
  - Mehmet Mete MUTLU, Bahri BASARAN*, Behzat Oral BITLISLI, Arife Candas ADIGUZEL ZENGIN
  ABSTRACT. It is still discussed whether the finishing process is art, craft or science. One thing for sure is that in most cases, colour uniformity obtained via finishing is vital for the evaluation of the leather in ready-made goods. Finishing process is the final step in leather processing, enhancing the final surface appearance and characteristics of the leather such as perceptual colour, opacity, feel touch, fastness and so on, toward the direction of customers' demands. In this study, effects of multiple finishing coats on the homogeneity of batch colours were investigated. For this purpose, randomly selected samples from batches of 500 leathers for 7 different colours were studied. Colour measurements of each leather were taken from 7 different regions, after each finishing step, to monitor the colour changes, and the results were evaluated statistically. According to our results, the uniformity problem observed in surface colour has been eliminated completely for beige, white, black and green colours by the opacity of finish coats and mechanical operations but not completely eliminated and just levelled to some extent for red and allied colours. In conclusion, it was found out that finishing was the main option for improving colour uniformity and matching quality in the batch, and thereby, increasing the cutting yield.
  
  KEY WORDS: leather finishing, colour uniformity, colour measurement
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Comparative Study on Cu(II) Biosorption by Fungal Strains from Different Aqueous Systems
- Pages 39-52
  Claudia Maria SIMONESCU^1,2*, Romulus DIMA³, Mariana FERDES³
  - ¹University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj Napoca, 3-5 Calea Mănăstur, RO-400372, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, email: claudiamaria_simonescu@yahoo.com
  - ²Politehnica University of Bucharest, Faculty of Applied Chemistry and Materials Science, Department of Inorganic Technology and Environmental Protection, 1-7 Polizu Street, RO-011061, Bucharest, Romania
  - ³Politehnica University of Bucharest, Faculty of Applied Chemistry and Materials Science, Department of Chemical Engineering, 1-7 Polizu Street, RO-011061, Bucharest, Romania, email: r_dima@chim.upb.ro; marianaferdes@yahoo.com
  ABSTRACT. Compared with conventional methods used in heavy metals removal from wastewater from electroplating and leather industry, biosorption is an efficient alternative to decrease the concentration of heavy metals from solutions of ppm to ppb concentrations using low cost materials. This process is much faster than other processes used to remove heavy metals. Biomass derived from dead organisms, algal biomass, microbial biomass (bacteria, fungi and yeasts) can be mentioned as potential biosorbents of metal ions. High biosorption capacity of fungal biomass is determined by their cell walls which contain compounds such as polysaccharides, proteins and lipids whose functional groups can be involved in heavy metal ions binding. Other advantages of fungal biomass are that it can tolerate adverse conditions such as low pH environments, but it can also be easily removed from liquid by simple filtration or centrifugation after biosorption process has taken place. This paper presents a comparative study on Cu(II) ions removal from synthetic aqueous systems in which CuS nanoparticles and copper sulphate were used as copper ion sources by biosorption process using eight fungal strains. The results obtained confirm that the source of metal ions from wastewaters is an important factor in their removal by biosorption.
  
  KEY WORDS: Cu(II) removal, wastewaters, fungal biomass, biosorption
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Cultural Models in Haute-Couture Fashion. Part II Sizes, Materials and Colours in Haute-Couture Fashion
- Pages 53-62
  Traian FOIASI*
  - INCDTP Division Leather and Footwear Research Institute, Bucharest, email: icpi@icpi.ro
  ABSTRACT. The cultural model expressed in haute-couture fashion, from the perspective of the author of the fashion product, is an artistic spectacle it itself, based on a philosophy of the culture of the moment at society level and on individual accumulation of culture. It becomes a successful media show if the whole collection of prototypes has managed to transpose, almost mathematically, the entire creative and cultural process of the author. The paper presents an analysis of relationships between the cultural concepts of the moment, area and technological style approached over time in footwear manufacturing, in order to demonstrate the role of the artistic concept of the product in the continuity of human culture. In the millennial history of footwear, sizes, materials, motifs, ornaments and colours have used symbols of national cultures, strictly related to artistic and religious values or to social status, and in the modern world history, cultural influences expressed through the fashion product were due to the socio-cultural, socio-economic and socio-ecological pressures of groups of people. Thus, in the 20th century, diversity of models and their quick transformations have constituted an aesthetic response of a socio-cultural dynamics. Once more it is proven that fashion is a mirror of the way people have lived, thought and were influenced by their natural environment and by society; in the 21st century, postmodern culture majorly influences lifestyles, attempting a modern adaptation of the individual to the universe.
  
  KEY WORDS: sizes, materials, colour, footwear, fashion
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