Objective
This project aims to develop at least one commercially viable recycling route for finished leather, thereby lessening the environmental impact of the footwear industry and improving its competitive edge by reducing waste disposal costs. The use of products containing waste leather will be demonstrated in applications in footwear and other industries.
The European footwear industry produces in excess of 1000 million pairs of footwear each year of which 70 percent has a leather upper material. It has been estimated that this process generates 100.000 tonnes of leather waste each year, most of which is disposed of by landfill or incineration. Increasing legislation and environmental concern is resulting in these disposal options becoming more difficult and hence more expensive. The European Footwear industry is already under price pressure from South America and Asia and increasing costs through wastage disposal will hinder the ability of a company to compete on the world market.
The objective of finding a viable recycling route for finished leather be achieved by :
- compression moulding an intimate mix of binder and leather fibres
- incorporating leather fibres into a nonwoven fabric
- using leather fibres as a filler for polymeric systems.
A comprehensive study will be undertaken to quantify what leather wastage there is in footwear and other industries such as clothing and furniture. Satra has existing data on footwear production and leather usage, but this lacks detail. For the purpose of this study, information has to be collected on the composition of the leather market such as type of leather (e.g. cow, pig or goat), type of tannage used and nature of finish. It is possible that these factors will affect the recyclability of the leather.
Leather fibre properties will be fully characterised using techniques such as optical and scanning electron microscopy, FTIR, GCMS and wet chemical methods.
Activities will be undertaken to disseminate information both during and on completion of the project. This will include in-house publications, trade journals and two seminars, at which use of the leather fibre containing materials will be demonstrated.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
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Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
NN16 9JH Kettering
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.