Comparison of Methods for Extraction of Keratin from Waste Wool

The U.S. sheep industry, more than 80,000 producers of 40 million pounds of raw wool per year, is an important component of the meat industry. New methods for the treatment of domestic wool with keratin isolated from the unmarketable fraction of wool, and functionalized for water, oil, or insect repellency are needed. As a first step in the process, we are evaluating the effectiveness of keratin solubilization via relatively benign methods that use thioglycolic acid, bisulfite or sulfide to reduce disulfide bonds, peracetic acid or percarbonate to oxidize disulfides, and urea/thiourea as hydrogen bond disrupters. The procedures are compared in terms of quality of soluble protein, cost effectiveness, potential for upscaling, environmental and operator safety. Successful completion of this project will provide the basis for commercial development of such methods, followed by functional modification of the soluble keratin, and its application to textiles.

生育酚对醛鞣革物理机械性能的影响

无铬革在皮革市场，特别是汽车座垫革市场越来越受到重视。耐紫外线和耐热性是两项重要的质量指标，我们开发了一种新的、对环境友好的涂饰操作，它可以提升汽车内饰草的耐紫外线和耐热性。对于胶原纤维，生育酚（维他命E）具有良好的清除紫外线作用从而能够保护其免受紫外线伤害。我们曾报道过铬鞣革的粒面经生育酚涂饰后耐用性大大提升。本文的研究对象是戊二醛鞣制的无铬革．用生育酚涂饰醛鞣革的粒面，并且在加脂过程中加入生育酚。此后，将处理过后的皮样放入褪色计，采用比色法和机械方法评估其耐紫外线和耐热性。采用配置有Berek补偿器的偏光显微镜比较涂饰前后胶原纤维的双折射率，从而确定生育酚的涂饰效果。数据显示，经生育酚涂饰过后的皮革具有更强的抗张强度和耐褪色性能，而在加脂过程中加入生育酚没有得到相似的效果。