Tanning with Pomegranate Peel Tannin

By-products of pomegranate juice enterprises are evaluated as a “green” raw material for many industries. In this study, pomegranate peels which are well known with high polyphenolic content were evaluated as a potential source of tanning agent for leather industry. For this purpose, firstly pomegranate peels were extracted in Koch extractor at 70°C for 8 hours. In order to determine the tanning ability, 30% of ground pomegranate peel powder (containing 7.2% of active tannin matter) was used in the tanning process and pomegranate peel tanned leather was evaluated in terms of increases in thickness and shrinkage temperature, color change and mechanical properties. The application of pomegranate peel tannin in the tanning process provided that an acceptable shrinkage temperature (68.5°C) and mechanical properties for vegetable tanned leathers. The results revealed that the tannin obtained from pomegranate peel has a remarkable tanning effect and can be used in the tanning process. Thus, it is concluded that pomegranate peels can be evaluated as a new source of tannin for leather industry.