GROUP-2

Presentation (16,19,23,44,47)
Heavy Metal Pollution
&
Tanneries Water Pollution
CONTENTS
 Introduction of Heavy Metals
 Factors of Heavy Metal Contamination
 Sources of Heavy Metals
 Toxicity of Heavy Metals
 Tanneries Water Pollution
 Tanning Process
 Tanning Affecting Water Bodies
 Chrome-tanning
 Methods of Treatment
 References
 Introduction of Heavy Metals
• Heavy metals are naturally occurring elements that have a high
atomic weight and a density at least 5 times greater than that of
water. They have such characteristics as luster, ductility,
malleability, and high electric and thermal
conductivity.
• Their multiple industrial, domestic, agricultural, medical and
technological applications have led to their wide distribution in
the environment, raising concerns over their potential effects on
human health and the environment.
Factors

Their toxicity depends on several factors

including;
 the dose
 route of exposure
 chemical species
 age
 gender
 genetics
 nutritional status of exposed individuals
Route of exposure
The heavy metals most commonly associated with
poisoning of humans are lead, mercury, arsenic and
cadmium. Heavy metal poisoning may occur as a
result of industrial exposure, air or water
pollution, foods, medicines, improperly coated
food containers, or the ingestion of lead-based
paints.
 Sources of Heavy Metals
Although heavy metals are naturally occurring
elements that are found throughout the earth’s
crust, most environmental contamination and
human exposure result from anthropogenic
activities such as;
o mining and smelting operations,
o industrial production and use,
o domestic and agricultural use of metals
Sources of Heavy Metals
 Environmental contamination can also occur
through;
o metal corrosion
o soil erosion of metal ions
o leaching of heavy metals
Sources of Heavy Metals
Natural phenomena such as weathering and volcanic
eruptions have also been reported to significantly
contribute to heavy metal pollution.

Industrial sources include metal processing in refineries,

coal burning in power plants, petroleum combustion,
nuclear power stations and high tension lines, plastics,
textiles, microelectronics, wood preservation and paper
processing plants.
Effects of heavy metals on plants
Toxicity of Heavy Metals
Cadmium Contamination
Human Health Effects
 Psychological Disorders
 Cause Diarrhea
 Kidney failure
 Damage to Immune system
 DNA damage
 Cancer Development
Environmental Effects
 Cd rich sludge can pollute
surface water & soil
 Cadmium can accumulate in
plants & animals
 Cadmium can bio-accumulate
in aquatic ecosystem
Lead Contamination
Human Health Effects
 Metabolic Poison
 Acute exposure may cause
kidney damage
 Inhibit Hb synthesis-causing
Anemia
 Breaks blood-brain barrier &
interfere with brain
development
Environmental Effects
 94% Pb in atmosphere derived
from heavy motor traffic.
 Lead combines with colloidal
particles found in natural water
 Urban run-off cause surface &
ground water pollution
Risk of Lead Exposure
Arsenic Contamination
Human Health Effects
 Birth Defects
 Carcinogenic-Lung, Liver and
Skin Cancer
 Severe Vomiting
 Diarrhea
 Severe exposure may cause
death
Environmental Effects
 Eventually settle and end up in
soils
 It also may absorb on
sediments and become
immobile in water
 Also percolates to ground water
How to avoid Heavy metals Exposure
During recent years, many treatment options like
physical, chemical, and biological were implied to
remediate heavy metal contaminated soil, water, and
sediments. Such methods include thermal treatment,
adsorption, chlorination, chemical extraction, ion-
exchange, membrane separation, electro-kinetics,
bioleaching etc.
ADSORBENTS USED FOR REMOVAL OF HEAVY METALS
FROM WASTEWATER
There are a number of types of adsorbent that are used for the efficient
removal of heavy metal removal from wastewater that are both
commercial and/or bio adsorbents. These are described as follows.

Commercially available adsorbents for chromium removal is

Graphene

Graphene is a carbon-based nanomaterial with a two-dimensional

structure, high specific surface area and good chemical stability. It is
available in various forms such as pristine graphene, graphene oxide
and reduced graphene oxide.
Graphene may be oxidized to add hydrophilic groups for heavy metal
removal adsorbed chromium onto the surface of graphene oxide.
Tanneries Water Pollution
What is Tanning
Tanning:
The action or process of converting animal skin into leather by soaking it in a liquid
containing tannic acid, or by the use of other chemicals.
Tanneries:
a place where animal hides are tanned; the workshop of a tanner.

Water enables reactions between added chemicals and the hide, thus
requiring it for multiple steps in the leather process.
Such a high demand for water generates an estimated 145 billion
gallons of wastewater per year.
Only 65-75% of chemicals are taken up during this process that results
in wastewater with a high pollution load.
Tanning pits
Why Does Leather Need To Be Tanned
Tanning is necessary for leather because if the raw hide is not tanned, it will
rot and putrefy. The tanning process stabilizes the protein of the raw hide or
skin, preventing putrefaction, and preparing it for a wide variety of end
applications.
Salting:
The next step is to cure the hides with salt. Curing prevents putrefaction by
preventing bacterial growth on the hide between procurement and
processing.
in which the hide is heavily salted and then pressed into packs for up to 30
days. Another way is to soak them in a saltwater brine for about 16 hours.
Salts include: Chromium salfate, aluminium, natrium and zirconium salts.
Effects of salts:
Chromic Sulfate can affect you when breathed in. Contact can cause skin
and eye irritation. Chromic Sulfate may cause a skin allergy.  perforated
eardrums, respiratory irritation, kidney damage, liver damage, pulmonary
congestion and edema, upper abdominal pain, nose irritation and damage,
respiratory cancer, and erosion.
lung cancer and nasal and sinus cancer.
Effects on agriculture:
  Negatively affects plant metabolic activities, hampering crop growth and yield
and reducing vegetable and grain quality.
Zirconium is unlikely to present a hazard to the environment. While aquatic plants
have a rapid uptake of soluble zirconium, land plants have little tendency to adsorb it,
and indeed 70% of plants that have been tested showed no zirconium to be present at
all.
Soaking:
The first step is to remove the salts left over from the curing in a process called
soaking. This process involves soaking the skins in water which has certain chemicals
added to prevent bacterial and fungal growth.
Chemicals: Benzioc acid,sodium benzoate, propionic acid,sorbic acid,biocides sodium
diacetate, formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, and heavy oils.
Effects:
 sodium benzoate can have side effects, including nausea, vomiting, and abdominal
pain .
sodium benzoate inhibits plant growth and biomass increase in
rice, and increasing application doses cause cell membrane
structure disruption. Sodium diacetate reduction in body weight
gain, loss of appetite and reduction in food consumption. Others
had raised white blood cell counts.

Liming:
soaking the hides in a drum or pit filled with milk of lime, an
alkaline solution. Liming results in the removal of natural grease
and fats as well as keratin and hair. Surfactants degrease also used.
 High Alkalinit
y
Effects: PH increase so
acidity decrease and
that reduce the
solubility of Al and Mn.
The availability of many
plant nutrients in soils,
including iron, zinc,
copper, and
manganese, is reduced
at high pH values.
Unhairing:
the removal of hair from the hides. After applying unhairing agents like
sodium hydroxide and calcium hydrosulfide
Effects: High concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) are toxic to plants
and inhibit their growth.
Previous research indicated that high concentrations of
H2S modulate the root system architecture (RSA) by
affecting auxin transport; however, the signaling pathway
underlying this process remains unclear.  
Hydrogen sulfide is estimated to remain in the atmosphere
for about 18 hours.
Deliming,
the step in which the alkalinity of the hides is reduced by
adding acids to the hides in a drum or pit. E.g Formic acids
and sulfuric acid.
Effects:
Plants have been found to be injured by exposures to
high concentrations of sulfuric acid
for short times of 4-16 hours. Injury to vegetation caused
by sulfuric acid is characterized by marginal and tip
necrosis of foliage.
Chrome Tanning
Chrome tanning is a predominantly used method for tanning
because it is time efficient and produces a product with
“excellent hydrothermal stability, better dyeing
characteristics, and softness”
80-90% of leather is tanned with trivalent chromium salts.
Chromium pollution comes as trivalent chromium (Cr III)
and hexavalent chromium (Cr VI).
Cr VI has the ability to penetrate human cells and cause
pathogenic effects such as allergic reactions, skin ulcers, and
perforations of the respiratory surface area and therefore
classified as carcinogenic and mutagenic.
Tanneries Waste Water Treatment
Treating wastewater produced from tanneries is essential
due to health, environmental, sustainability, and business
concerns.
When applied and monitored correctly treatment can be
effective in removing pathogenic microorganisms that
effect human and agricultural health.
Annually, the leather industry produces 1.3 million lbs of
sludge and 80 billion gallons of wastewater with
expectation to increase.
Tanneries Waste Water Treatment
Effluent from tanneries is of high concern due to high
concentrations of toxic substances that contribute to the
increase in;
 Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)
Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS)
Total Suspended Solids (TSS)
Chromium (Cr)
Nitrogen (N)
Methods of Treatment
Methods have been employed to further the success of
treating tannery effluent, such as;
electrochemical treatment
primary and secondary treatment
advance wastewater treatment
Electrochemical treatment, such as electrocoagulation, is
a popular treatment method that has success with removal
of chromium, treatment of organic wastewater, and
reduction of BOD, COD, and oils in surfaces receiving
discharged wastewater.
Methods of Treatment-Electrocoagulation
References:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4144
270/
https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/60680
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337724099
_Water_Pollution_Caused_by_Leather_Industry_A_R
eview