Question

What is tanning?
A. A process of making cement
B. A process of making leather
C. A process of making paper
D. A process of making sugar

Answer 1

Hint: The process ‘tanning’ gets its name from this chemical compound ‘tannin’ that is used. It is a process which leads to the manufacturing of garments.

Complete answer:
Tanning is the process or activity which is important for converting animal hide or skin into leather. It is a chemical process in which the protein structures of the skin are completely altered. This treatment makes the skin less susceptible to decomposition. It also becomes more durable and more colourable. Before performing tanning on the animal hides, the oils, salts and hair are removed from it. It is then soaked in water for two days. The duration for soaking can be anywhere between 6 hours to 48 hours depending on which animal’s hide it is.

Tannins and other compounds of tannins are present in plants which provide them protection from predators. The tannin from teak and oak tree barks are used in the process of tanning for leathers. The process ‘tanning’ gets its name from this chemical compound ‘tannin’ that is used.
The process of tanning can be done in three ways:
1. Chrome – Chromium sulfate, which is considered as the most efficient agentis for tanning, is used in this process. It takes less than a day to perform this process and is therefore faster than vegetable tanning. It produces stretchable leather which is great for making garments and handbags.
2. Vegetable – This process uses ‘tannin’ which is obtained from barks of trees and leaves of several plants. This type of tanning produces a not-so-flexible leather. Such leather is used for making belts, footwear, accessories, furniture etc.
3. Alternative Chemical – It produces off white coloured leather. The leather produced is a semi-finished product and is called wet white.

Hence, the correct answer is option (B)

Note: India has over 2000 tanneries. The maximum number of tanneries in India are located in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. The biggest producer of leather in the world is China.