Leather, like so many other materials, has been a part of civilisation for centuries; and, like many other ancient items, advances in technology have led to improvements in leather processing. One of the biggest advances in the leather industry has been the introduction of certain chemicals into the finishing product; these chemicals allow leather to be customised to fit different purposes (i.e. luggage, clothing). Some of the most common chemicals used in the leather industry, as well as their uses, are looked at below.

Because leather is an animal hide, without some form of preservation, the skin would rot (and smell); the process of preserving leather is called “tanning”. At some point in time, people realised that they could soak animal hides in tannin (tannic acid), a substance that comes from tree bark or wood, roots, and berries; this process, called vegetable tanning, is still in use today. That process, however, is a relatively time consuming one; a quicker method of tanning using chromium (chrome tanning), was developed in the mid-1850’s, and is now the most commonly used tanning method.

Other chemicals are involved in leather processing, as well; lime is one of those chemicals, used for removing hair and proteins in the leather. The piece is then washed in another chemical, ammonium chloride, in order to neutralise the lime. Soaking the leather in sulphuric acid is the final step in the process. Though leather chemicals do have some serious environmental and health concerns attached, advances in technology are helping to make this process more environmentally friendly.