‘In situ’ shavings recycling technology attracts interest in Shanghai
31/08/2017
The system called ReeL (from ‘resource-efficient manufacturing of leather chemicals’) consists of manufacturing equipment for recycling shavings during the leather manufacturing process. It can be used on-site at tanneries, allowing leather manufacturers to produce retanning agents on their own using these shavings and organic biomass. Using equipment and materials from Lanxess will make it possible for tanners to make their own retanning agents from the X-Biomer range that Lanxess launched in 2014.
Lanxess has said that it will be possible for tanners to lease this equipment from the chemicals manufacturer. According to Lanxess’s calculations, a medium-sized tannery can produce between one and two tonnes of shavings a day. Using the leased equipment, a tanner could manufacture a substantial volume of retanning agents, in situ and on demand.
Full results from a pilot project running at Heller Leder in Germany are still being compiled, but the model and a video showing how the system works attracted the attention of a number of major Chinese tanners during the Shanghai show.
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