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Characterization, Fluxes and Toxicity of Leather Tanning Bath Chemicals in a Large Tanning District Area (IT)

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Water, Air, & Soil Pollution: Focus

Abstract

The leather tanning industry is perceived as responsible of a significant consume of natural resources and output of wastes such as high concentration of organics, salts and heavy metals such as chromium, both in solid and liquid form as a result. Now as ever the future of tanneries strongly depends on the increase of their awareness that a sustainable industry for the future means embracing a forward-looking philosophy of the leather making process through optimal resource management within the tannery. This study reports the characterization of some chemicals used in a large tanning district area in terms of COD, BOD, aromaticity (UV280) and double bond (UV254) absorbance measurements, toxicity on fresh and saline water as well as terrestrial species, GC-MS scanning. The study provides a consistent set of information on tannin-associated concentration-related trends and suggests novel criteria in defining control quality for evaluating environmental impact of leather tanning industry.

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Acknowledgements

This study was carried out within the scope of contribution to the database of the EU COST Action 636 “Xenobiotics in the Urban Water Cycle”. The technical assistance of Mr. Paolo Napodano, and recommendations in toxicology laboratory by D.ssa Mafalda Inglese are highly appreciated. The authors gratefully thank the leather-tanning district for their collaboration. Egemen Aydin is grateful to Tincel Foundation (Istanbul, Turkey) for granting a scholarship supported his short-term stay in Italy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Sanitary and Environmental Engineering Division (SEED), University of Salerno, via Ponte don Melillo, Fisciano, 1-84084, Salerno, Italy

    Giusy Lofrano, Vincenzo Belgiorno & Sureyya Meric

  2. Environmental Engineering Department, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, 34469, Istanbul, Turkey

    Egemen Aydin

  3. Ecotoxicology Research Laboratory (ERL-UNINA), Section of Physiology and Hygiene, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, I-80134, Naples, Italy

    Francesca Russo, Marco Guida & Sureyya Meric

Authors
  1. Giusy Lofrano
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  2. Egemen Aydin
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  3. Francesca Russo
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  4. Marco Guida
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  5. Vincenzo Belgiorno
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  6. Sureyya Meric
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Correspondence to Sureyya Meric.

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Lofrano, G., Aydin, E., Russo, F. et al. Characterization, Fluxes and Toxicity of Leather Tanning Bath Chemicals in a Large Tanning District Area (IT). Water Air Soil Pollut: Focus 8, 529–542 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11267-008-9177-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11267-008-9177-7

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