An exploration of enhancing thermal stability of leather by hydrophilicity regulation: effect of hydrophilicity of phenolic syntan

Abstract

Effect of retanning on the thermal stability of leather is eliciting increasing attention. However, the relationship between the hydrophilicity of retanning agents and the heat resistance of leather and the corresponding mechanism remain unclear. Herein, phenolic formaldehyde syntans (PFSs) were selected as models to explore the effect of the hydrophilicity of retanning agents on the thermal stability of retanned leather. The thermal stability of leather was closely correlated to the hydrophilic group content (sulfonation degree) of PFSs. As the sulfonation degree increased, the water absorption rate of PFSs and their retanned leathers decreased, whereas the thermal stability of leather increased. Molecular dynamics simulation results proved that the introduction of PFSs could reduce the binding ability of collagen molecules with water and thus decreased the water molecules around the PFS-treated collagen. These results may provide guidance for the tanners to select retanning agents reasonably to improve the thermal stability of leather.

Graphical Abstract