The project is undertaken in partnership with Leverkusen’s INVITE research institution, which is working with Lanxess to develop a modular pilot plant for the process, and HELLER-LEDER GMbH, a tannery in Hehlen, Lower Saxony that will run feasibility tests. The German Federal Ministry of Education is contributing almost half a million euros in funding.
“As one of the largest manufacturers of chemicals for the leather industry, we consider the sustainability of these processes to of particular importance to us,” says Luis López-Remón, head of the Leather business unit at Lanxess. “Our goal with this project is to highlight how production waste during leather manufacture can be recycled directly in the tannery, thus significantly improving the sustainability profile compared to the conventional production of retanning agents in centralized production facilities located far away from the tanneries.”
Pilot-scale tests are expected to begin by mid-2017.