Ultrasonic effects on titanium tanning of leather

The effects of ultrasound on titanium tanning of leather were investigated. Either 20 or 40 kHz ultrasound was applied to the titanium tanning of pigskins. Five different treatment conditions were carried out and the effects were examined, such as leather shrinkage temperature (T(s)), titanium content and titanium distribution in the leather. Overall heat loading was carefully controlled. Results showed that 20 kHz ultrasound effectively improves titanium agent penetration into the hide and increases the leather's shrinkage temperature. Doubling the frequency to 40 kHz produced negligible enhancements. An impressive 105.6 degrees C T(s) was achieved using 20 kHz ultrasound pretreatment of the tanning liquor followed by 20 kHz ultrasound in the tanning mixture (liquor plus pigskins) in a special salt-free medium. Finally, using a unique ultrasonic tanning drum with 26.5 kHz ultrasound, the T(s) reached a record level of 106.5 degrees C, a value not achieved in conventional (no ultrasound) titanium tanning. The ultrasonic effects on titanium tanning of leather are judged to make a superior mineral tanned leather.     

Use of ultrasound in leather processing Industry: Effect of sonication on substrate and substances – New insights

Influence of ultrasound (US) on various unit operations in leather processing has been studied with the aim to improve the process efficiency, quality, reduce process time and achieve near-zero discharge levels in effluent streams as a cleaner option. Effect of US on substrate (skin/leather) matrix as well as substances used in different unit operations have been studied and found to be useful in the processing. Absorption of US energy by leather in process vessel at different distances from US source has been measured and found to be significant. Effect of particle-size of different substances due to sonication indicates positive influence on the diffusion through the matrix. Our experimental results suggest that US effect is better realized for the cases with pronounced diffusion hindrance. Influence of US on bioprocessing of leather has been studied and found beneficial. Attempts have also been made to improve the US aided processing using external aids. Operating US in pulse mode operation could be useful in order to reduce the electrical energy consumption. Use of US has also been studied in the preparation of leather auxiliaries involving mass-transfer resistance. Preliminary cost analysis carried out for ultrasound-assisted leather-dyeing process indicates scale-up possibility. Therefore, US application provide improvement in process efficiency as well as making cleaner production methods feasible. Hence, overall results suggest that use of US in leather industry is imminent and potential viable option in near future.     

Power ultrasound and its applications: A state-of-the-art review

Ultrasonic processing has attracted increasing attention by people because ultrasonic technology may represent a flexible ‘green’ alternative for energy efficient processes. The major challenges for the power ultrasound application in real situations are the design and development of specific power ultrasonic systems for large-scale operations. Thus, new families of power ultrasonic transducers have been developed in recent years to meet actual needs, and this contributes to the implementation of power ultrasound of application in many fields such as chemical industry, food industry and manufacturing. This paper presents the current state of ultrasonic transducers of magnetostrictiv type and piezoelectric type as well as applications of power ultrasound in various industrial fields including chemical reactions, drying/dehydration, welding, extraction, heat transfer enhancement, de-ice, enhanced oil recovery, droplet atomization, cleaning and fine particle removal. The review paper helps to understand the current development of power ultrasonic technology and its applications in various situations, and induce extended applications of power ultrasound to more and more fields.     

Studies on the use of power ultrasound in leather dyeing

Uses of power ultrasound for acceleration/performing the chemical as well as physical processes are gaining importance. In conventional leather processing, the diffusion of chemicals through the pores of the skin/hide is achieved by the mechanical agitation caused by the paddle or drumming action. In this work, the use of power ultrasound in the dyeing of leather has been studied with the aim to improve the exhaustion of dye for a given processing time, to reduce the dyeing time and to improve the quality of dyed leather. The effect of power ultrasound in the dyeing of full chrome cow crust leather in a stationary condition is compared with dyeing in the absence of ultrasound as a control experiment both in a stationary as well as conventional drumming condition. An ultrasonic cleaner (150 W and 33 kHz) was used for the experiments. Actual power dissipated into the system was calculated from the calorimetric measurement. Experiments were carried out with variation in type of dye, amount of dye offer, temperature and time. The results show that there is a significant improvement in the percentage exhaustion of dye due to the presence of ultrasound, when compared to dyeing in absence of ultrasound. Experiments on equilibrium dye uptake carried out with or without ultrasound suggest that ultrasound help to improve the kinetics of leather dyeing. The results indicate that leathers dyed in presence of ultrasound have higher colour values, better dye penetration and fastness properties compared to control leathers. The physical testing results show that strength properties of the dyed leathers are not affected due to the application of ultrasound under the given process conditions. Apparent diffusion coefficient during the initial stage of dyeing process, both in presence and in absence of ultrasound was calculated. The values show that ultrasound helps in improving the apparent diffusion coefficient more for the difficult dyeing conditions such as in the case of metal-complex dyes having bigger aggregate size compared to less difficult dyeing conditions.     

The optimisation of ultrasonic cleaning procedures for dairy fouled ultrafiltration membranes

Ultrafiltration (UF) of whey is a major membrane based process in the dairy industry. However, commercialization of this application has been limited by membrane fouling, which has a detrimental influence on the permeation rate. There are a number of different chemical and physical cleaning methods currently used for cleaning a fouled membrane. It has been suggested that the cleaning frequency and the severity of such cleaning procedures control the membrane lifetime. The development of an optimal cleaning strategy should therefore have a direct implication on the process economics. Recently, the use of ultrasound has attracted considerable interest as an alternative approach to the conventional methods. In the present study, we have studied the ultrasonic cleaning of polysulfone ultrafiltration membranes fouled with dairy whey solutions. The effects of a number of cleaning process parameters have been examined in the presence of ultrasound and results compared with the conventional operation. Experiments were conducted using a small single sheet membrane unit that was immersed totally within an ultrasonic bath. Results show that ultrasonic cleaning improves the cleaning efficiency under all experimental conditions. The ultrasonic effect is more significant in the absence of surfactant, but is less influenced by temperature and transmembrane pressure. Our results suggest that the ultrasonic energy acts primarily by increasing the turbulence within the cleaning solution.     

Ultrasound assisted chrome tanning: Towards a clean leather production technology

Nowadays, there is a growing demand for a cleaner, but still effective alternative for production processes like in the leather industry. Ultrasound (US) assisted processing of leather might be promising in this sense. In the present paper, the use of US in the conventional chrome tanning process has been studied at different pH, temperature, tanning time, chrome dose and US exposure time by exposing the skin before tanning and during tanning operation. Both prior exposure of the skin to US and US during tanning improves the chrome uptake and reduces the shrinkage significantly. Prior exposure of the skin to US increase the chrome uptake by 13.8% or reduces the chrome dose from 8% to 5% (% based on skin weight) and shorten the process time by half while US during tanning increases the chrome uptake by 28.5% or reduces the chrome dose from 8% to 4% (half) and the tanning time to one third compared to the control without US. Concomitantly, the resulting leather quality (measured as skin shrinkage) improved from 5.2% to 3.2% shrinkage in the skin exposed to US prior tanning and to 1.3% in the skin exposed to US during the tanning experiment. This study confirms that US chrome tanning is an effective and eco-friendly tanning process which can produce a better quality leather product in a shorter process time with a lower chromium dose.     

Ultrasound assisted enhancement in natural dye extraction from beetroot for industrial applications and natural dyeing of leather

There is a growing demand for eco-friendly/non-toxic colorants, specifically for health sensitive applications such as coloration of food and dyeing of child textile/leather garments. Recently, dyes derived from natural sources for these applications have emerged as an important alternative to potentially harmful synthetic dyes and pose need for suitable effective extraction methodologies. The present paper focus on the influence of process parameters for ultrasound assisted leaching of coloring matter from plant materials. In the present work, extraction of natural dye from beetroot using ultrasound has been studied and compared with static/magnetic stirring as a control process at 45 °C. The influence of process parameters on the extraction efficiency such as ultrasonic output power, time, pulse mode, effect of solvent system and amount of beetroot has been studied. The use of ultrasound is found to have significant improvement in the extraction efficiency of colorant obtained from beetroot. Based on the experiments it has been found that a mixture of 1:1 ethanol–water with 80 W ultrasonic power for 3 h contact time provided better yield and extraction efficiency. Pulse mode operation may be useful in reducing electrical energy consumption in the extraction process. The effect of the amount of beetroot used in relation to extraction efficiency has also been studied. Two-stage extraction has been studied and found to be beneficial for improving the yield for higher amounts of beetroot. Significant 8% enhancement in % yield of colorant has been achieved with ultrasound, 80 W as compared to MS process both using 1:1 ethanol–water. The coloring ability of extracted beet dye has been tested on substrates such as leather and paper and found to be suitable for dyeing. Ultrasound is also found to be beneficial in natural dyeing of leather with improved rate of exhaustion. Both the dyed substrates have better color values for ultrasonic beet extract as inferred from reflectance measurement. Therefore, the present study clearly offers efficient extraction methodology from natural dye resources such as beetroot with ultrasound even dispensing with external heating. Thereby, also making eco-friendly non-toxic dyeing of fibrous substances a potential viable option.     

Energetic study of ultrasonic wettability enhancement

Many industrial and biological interfacial processes, such as welding and breathing depend directly on wettability and surface tension phenomena. The most common methods to control the wettability are based on modifying the properties of the fluid or the substrate. The present work focuses on the use of high-frequency acoustic waves (ultrasound) for the same purpose. It is well known that ultrasound can effectively clean a surface by acoustic cavitation, hence ultrasonic cleaning technology. Besides the cleaning process itself, many authors have observed an important wettability enhancement when liquids are exposed to low and high (ultrasonic) frequency vibration. Ultrasound goes one step further as it can instantly adjust the contact angle by tuning the vibration amplitude, but there is still a lack of comprehension about the physical principles that explain this phenomenon. To shed light on it, a thermodynamic model describing how ultrasound decreases the contact angle in a three-phase wetting system has been developed. Moreover, an analytical and experimental research has been carried out in order to demonstrate that ultrasound is an important competitor to surfactants in terms of energy efficiency and environmental friendliness.     

The effect of ultrasound on diffusion through membranes

The effect of ultrasound and its mechanisms have been studied in the case of diffusion of electrolytes through cellophane membranes as a function of the intensity of the ultrasonic field, the concentration gradient and the irradiation time.The main cause of acceleration of diffusion with ultrasound is the appearance of acoustic microcurrents. Also taking part are: radiation pressure, gravitation, cavitation and acoustic pressure.Values of the diffusion coefficients were calculated from Fick's first law for the case of the stationary processes.     

Ultrasonics in food processing

In recent years, the physical and chemical effects of ultrasound in liquid and solid media have been extensively used in food processing applications. Harnessing the physical forces generated by ultrasound, in the absence and presence of cavitation, for specific food processing applications such as emulsification, filtration, tenderisation and functionality modification have been highlighted. While some applications, such as filtration and emulsification are "mature" industrial processes, other applications, such as functionality modification, are still in their early stages of development. However, various investigations discussed suggest that ultrasonic processing of food and dairy ingredients is a potential and viable technology that will be used by many food industries in the near future.     

Chrome tannage using high-intensity ultrasonic field

The process time in chrome tannage in leather making, using an elastic compression cycle followed by irradiation by high-intensity ultrasound, is quite short lasting only a few minutes, compared with a process time of several hours in modern chrome tannage. After ultrasonic irradiation, samples were basified in 17 h in chrome liquor at a pH of 4.0 and the shrinkage temperature was measured. The determination of the efficiency for the chrome liquor penetrating into the hides can be based on the steepness of the shrinkage temperature-processing time curve. An approximate value of 20 degrees C min(-1) can be evaluated for the initial slope of the curve when elastic compression and high-intensity ultrasonic irradiation is used, and a processing time of 2 min is required in chrome liquor (plus 17 h basification and 24 h storage time) to obtain leather stable to boiling. Usually, hides are kept in chrome liquor for 2 h.     

Ultrasound influence on the activation step before electroless coating

This paper is devoted to the electroless plating of non-conductive substrates under ultrasound at 530 kHz. The ultrasonic irradiation is applied to the activation and to the plating steps. Effects are measured by following the final copper thickness obtained in 1 h of plating time, easily correlated to the average plating rate. It appears that ultrasound has a strong influence on the plating rates enhancement, and assumptions can be made that this increase could be linked to the catalyst cleaning. This is confirmed by XPS measurements.     

Applications of ultrasound in processing of liquid foods: A review

Ultrasonic processing of a variety of liquids, drinks and beverages has generated much interest with published literature papers increasing within this area in recent years. Benefits include enhanced emulsification with improved homogenization and fat globule size reduction being recorded. In dairy systems increased creaming rates are observed on sonication in a process known as fractionation. Whilst fruit juices exhibit retention or enhancement of quality parameters whilst increasing levels of bioactive compounds. Sterilization of liquids is a large feature of ultrasonic treatment with microbial activity of a range of fruit juices being monitored over time as increased stability and reduced spoilage is observed. Progress has also been made towards scale up of ultrasonic processes with several examples of batch and continuous processes being studied with reduced processing times and temperatures being quoted as a result of ultrasonic treatment. This short review covers the effect of sonication on liquids and beverages with a specific focus towards dairy and fruit juices and covers emulsification, fractionation, sterilization and some pilot scale initiatives.     

超声波作用下污泥水分扩散过程的数值模拟

建立了超声波作用下污泥内部水分扩散模型,利用分形理论对超声波(20 kHz)作用下污泥内部孔隙结构进行描述,探讨了超声波声能密度对污泥孔隙表面分形维数df及孔隙通道曲折度分形维数dw的影响,在此基础上建立了超声波作用下多孔介质中液体有效扩散系数的分形模型,对不同声能密度超声波辐照下污泥水分扩散过程进行了数值模拟.研究发...     

A combination of ultrasound and inorganic catalyst: removal of 2-chlorophenol from aqueous solution

Removal of 2-chlorophenol by ultrasonic waves (sonolysis), inorganic catalyst, and a combination of the two processes was tested and compared with each technique. In sonolysis, 2-chlorophenol mostly degraded indirectly in the bulk of solution by the radicals produced in the cavitation process. In catalyst treatment, the removal was performed in the presence of Al2O3, TiO2 and CuO. The highest removal was achieved in the presence of TiO2 for this pollutant. In the combined method an enhancement was observed for the removal of 2-chlorophenol. This could be attributed primarily to the continuous cleaning and chemical activation of the catalyst by acoustic cavitation. The mass transfer between the liquid phase and the catalyst and also the surface area of the catalyst are accelerated by the ultrasonic waves. The removal of 2-chlorophenol was performed under different intensities of irradiation, temperatures and quantities of catalyst. Some experiments were conducted in the presence of a Fenton reagent. In kinetic point of view, the removal of pollutant showed a pseudo-first order behavior. The combined method had a higher rate coefficient than sonolysis and catalyst treatment individually. Under some conditions, the presence of ultrasound has increased the rate coefficient of removal to about 10 times that in the absence of ultrasound.     

Ultrasounds: an industrial solution to optimise costs, environmental requests and quality for textile finishing

Ultrasounds are widely used at industrial scale for cleaning of mechanical pieces for example. Potential applications exist for finishing of textiles. This work aimed to improve traditional textile finishing processes thanks to ultrasound. The technical objective was to develop specific applicators of ultrasonic energy which could be adapted on jigger, a widespread textile finishing machine. Laboratory studies have allowed to define the conditions for application of ultrasounds and check their effects on fibre structure, validated by trials in dynamic conditions. Ultrasound technology makes it possible to intensify the phenomena of diffusion and washing by the effect of cavitation and improves effectiveness of traditional washing treatments. Industrial ultrasound processes need further optimisation on industrial machines.     

Large scale sonochemical processing: aspiration and actuality

It has been recognised for many years that power ultrasound has great potential in a wide variety of processes in the chemical and allied industries. Some of these processes have been known for many years and continue to flourish as major commercial applications, e.g. plastic welding and cleaning. Others, like ultrasonic drilling, while showing great potential have not been widely exploited to date. The potential for the industrial use of power ultrasound is enormous, and yet industry seems somewhat reluctant to adopt it. In this article the existing uses of power ultrasound in processing are reviewed and the potentials are explored.     

Macrosonics in industry: 4. Chemical processing

Acoustic irradiation can result in increased inter-phase mass and heat transfer rates. The second-order acoustic effects of cavitation, interfacial instability, radiation pressure and acoustic streaming are responsible for the enhancement in these rate processes. The application of sonic and ultrasonic energy in industrial processing is reviewed. A number of units using acoustic energy to enhance rates of conventional unit processes, for example, drying, solid-liquid extraction, etc, are described. In addition, new applications in waste water treatment and oil-water emulsion fuels are described. The development of newer, more efficient generators should lead to a greater use of acoustic energy for large-scale industrial processing.     

Sonochemical and photosonochemical degradation of 4-chlorophenol in aqueous media

The degradation of 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) in aqueous media by 516 kHz ultrasonic irradiation was investigated in order to clarify the degradation mechanism. The degradation of concentrated 4-CP solution by means of ultrasound, UV irradiation and their combined application was also studied. The obtained results indicate that *OH radical are the primary reactive species responsible for 4-CP ultrasonic degradation. Very little 4-CP degradation occurs if the sonolysis is carried out in the presence of the *OH radical scavenger tert-butyl alcohol, also indicating that little or no pyrolysis of the compound occurs. The dominant degradation mechanism is the reaction of substrate with *OH radicals at the gas bubble-liquid interface rather than high temperature direct pyrolysis in ultrasonic cavities. This mechanism can explain the lower degradation rate of the ionic form of 4-CP that is partly due to the rapid dissociation of *OH radicals in alkaline solutions. The sonochemical destruction of concentrated 4-CP aqueous solution is obtained with low rate. Coupling photolysis with ultrasound irradiation results in increased efficiency compared to the individual processes operating at common conditions. Interestingly, the photosonochemical decomposition rate constant is greater than the additive rate constants of the two processes. This may be the result of three different oxidative processes direct photochemical action, high frequency sonochemistry and reaction with ozone produced by UV irradiation of air, dissolved in liquid phase because of the geyser effect of ultrasound streaming. Additionally, the photodecomposition, at 254 nm, of hydrogen peroxide produced by ultrasound generating *OH radical can partly explain the destruction enhancement.     

Growth and size control in anti-solvent crystallization of glycine with high frequency ultrasound

Antisolvent crystallization of glycine was performed under ultrasonic irradiation of 1.6 MHz. The irradiation enhanced both the growth of α-glycine crystal and the uniformity in the crystal size. The degree of both enhancement effects increased with increasing ultrasonic power. While under the irradiation of 20 kHz ultrasound, no growth enhancement was observed, but the crystal size reduced as was reported in the literature. To elucidate the mechanism of growth enhancement, another experiment was designed and conducted to avoid the effect of nucleation from the sonocrystallization. The result suggests that the ultrasound enhances the incorporation of microcrystals to larger crystals. Probably, the collision between solid particles is intensified by the disturbance characterized by the high frequency ultrasound. The crystal growth was modeled with an apparent reaction of microcrystal and larger crystal. The result of the growth experiment was successfully predicted with a rate equation for pseudo first order reaction with a single parameter of rate constant. The rate constant linearly increased with the ultrasonic power. The analysis enables quantitative evaluation of the ultrasonic effect on the crystal growth.