This book offers a state-of-the-art view of leather making, based on the scientific principles underpinning the technology. In particular, it contributes to the understanding of the modern leather industry, allowing practitioners to make judgements about day-to-day problems in the tannery and how change can be applied in a predictable way. Major themes running through the book are the economics and environmental impact of leather making and how these will ensure the sustainability of the industry. This second edition of Tony Covington’s Tanning Chemistry is a revision, update and extension in collaboration with a new co-author, Will Wise. The update reflects the advances made in the past decade, including a discussion of the impact of new information concerning the chemistry of sulfide. The original chapters have been re-organised and new chapters on novel modes of reagent delivery and the principles of finishing are now included. Enzymology is addressed as a separate topic, as are environmental impact and the future of leather. The book will be useful to all those involved in the supply chain, from farm, through students, chemical suppliers and tanners, to leather goods brands. Leather science is the key to understanding leather technology, to make it work, to make it work better and to keep it ahead of the competition.

Even in the 21st Century, the manufacture of leather retains an air of the dark arts, still somewhat shrouded in the mysteries of a millennia old, craft based industry. Despite the best efforts of a few scientists over the last century or so, much of the understanding of the principles of tanning is still based on received wisdom and experience. Leather is made from (usually) the hides and skins of animals - large animals such as cattle have hides, small animals such as sheep have skins. The skin of any animal is largely composed of the protein collagen, so it is the chemistry of this fibrous protein and the properties it confers to the skin with which the tanner is most concerned. In addition, other components of the skin impact on processing, impact on the chemistry of the material and impact on the properties of the product, leather. Therefore, it is useful to understand the relationships between skin structure at the molecular and macro levels, the changes imposed by modifying the chemistry of the material and the eventual properties of the leather. This book aims to contribute to changing the thinking in the industry, to continue building a body of scientific understanding, aimed at enhancing the sustainability of an industry which produces a unique group of materials, derived from a natural source. The Science of Leather is the only current text on tanning science, and addresses the scientific principles which underpin the processes involved in making leather. It is concerned with the chemical modification of collagen, prior to tanning and the tanning reactions in particular. The subject is covered in the following order: collagen chemistry, collagen structure, skin structure, processing to prepare for tanning, the tanning processes and processing after tanning. The aim of the book is to provide leather scientists and technologists with an understanding of how the reactions work, the nature of their outcomes and how the processes can be controlled and changed. The objective is to synthesise a scientific view of leather making and to arrive at an understanding of the nature of tanning - how the wide range of chemistries employed in the art can change the properties of collagen, making leather with different properties, especially conferring different degrees of stabilisation as measured by the hydrothermal stability. Environmental issues are not treated as a separate theme - the impact of leather making on the environment is a thread running through the text, with the assumption that better understanding of the science of leather making will lead to improved processing. The book also reflects on the ways leather technology may develop in the future based on the foundation of understanding the scientific principles which can be exploited. It also includes a subject index, references and a glossary. The book provides the reader with insights into the role science plays in leather technology and provides fundamental understanding, which should be the basis for scientific and technological research and development for the benefit of the global leather industry. The book is aimed at students, leather scientists and technologists, in both academia and industry, in leather production and in chemical supply houses.

First edition published under title, Deerskins into buckskins: how to tan with natural materials; a field guide for hunters and gatherers, c1997.

Science for Students of Leather Technology is the first of a series of textbooks of leather science and technology designed to assist students at technical colleges and institutes as well as at universities. The book begins with an introduction to leather manufacturing. This is followed by separate chapters on the physical chemistry of solutions needed by students of leather manufacture; types of macromolecules; lipids and their use at various stages of leather manufacture; and the principles of their use as surface agents. Subsequent chapters deal with the general features of skin as an organ; how the skins from different animals may develop their special characteristics; common problems arising from insects and from micro-organisms in leather manufacture; and the structure and reactions of chromium complexes, which are the most widely used tanning agents; and modern views on the structure of the vegetable tannins and of the dyestuffs and pigments. This book is intended for students with a variety of backgrounds. Those whose chemical studies have not proceeded much beyond the elementary level will find considerable difficulty with some sections, especially where the organic chemistry of complex molecules (proteins, carbohydrates, dyes and vegetable tannins) is described. It is, however, possible to supplement the explanations given by reference to standard chemical textbooks, using the subject matter of the present volume as a guide to those sections which would repay further study.

Conservation techniques for the analysis and preservation of heritage materials are constantly progressing. Building on the first edition of Conservation Science, this new edition incorporates analytical techniques and data processing methods that have emerged in the past decade and presents them alongside notable case studies for each class of material. An introductory chapter on analytical techniques provides a succinct overview to bring the reader up-to-speed with which type of material each technique is suitable for, the differing sampling techniques that can be employed, and the handling and processing of the resultant data. Subsequent chapters go on to cover all common heritage materials in turn, from natural substances such as wood and stone to modern plastics, detailing the up-to-date techniques for their analysis. With contributions by scientists working in the museum and heritage sector, this textbook will interest students, scientists involved in conservation, and conservators who want to develop their understanding of their collections at a material level.