TREATMENT OF TANNERY EFFLUENT USING GROUNDNUT SHELLS

Abstract

Manufacturing of leather, leather goods, leather boards and fur produces numerous by-products, solid wastes, high amounts of waste water containing different loads of pollutants and emissions into the land and water. The uncontrolled release of tannery effluents to natural water bodies increases health risks for human beings and environmental pollution. Effluents from raw hide processing tanneries, which produce wet-blue, crust leather or finished leather contain compounds of copper, nickel, lead, chromium, cadmium etc., in most cases. Organic and other ingredients are responsible for high BOD (Biological Oxygen Demand) and COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) values and represent an immense pollution load, causing technical problems, sophisticated technologies and high costs in concern with effluent treatment. Therefore, an attempt has been made to use groundnut shell in the treatment of effluent.

The Activated Groundnut shells(AGSs) can be used as an alternative source of raw materials/adsorbents for the efficient treatment of tannery waste water. This treatment proves that the various parameters are reduced by certain percentages BOD5 by 87%, DO by 64%, TSS by 74%, Calcium by 39%,Chromium by 80% etc., by our absorbent material. This analysis of results shows that most of the parameters of treated

effluent are within permissible limit for discharge .

The treatment is eco-friendly without use of chemicals, special equipments, electricity and also with zero operational and maintenance cost.