Study on High-Absorption Chrome Tanning Technology Assisted by CO2 Low Temperature Plasma Treatment

Low temperature plasma (LTP) technology is a green, solvent-free, clean, efficient, environment-friendly surface treatment technology. The pioneering works were carried out by applying LTP to surface modification of natural leather in order to improve the chrome tanning absorption rate. The effects of different treatment time on tanning absorption rate, micro-structure, chemical compositions, active groups of leather fiber were studied. The optimal CO2 plasma treatment time is 10min, Compared with the untreated leather, the chrome tanning absorption rate increased from 81.49 to 91.82 %. The SEM results show that the CO2 plasma-treated leather is rougher and even appears some micro-pores and fissures. Form the XPS analysis, compared with the untreated leather, the O1s concentration and the O/C ratio of the modified leather both increase from 18.75% to 28.85% and from 0.258 to 0.479, respectively. The results show CO2 LTP treatment effectively improves the chrome tanning absorption rate of pickled goat leather, which reduces the emission of heavy metal chromium and protects the environment.