Nowadays, the need to reduce plastic waste and scantly biodegradable fossil-based products is of great importance. The use of leather as an alternative to synthetic materials is gaining renewed interest, but it is fundamental that any alternative to plastic-based materials should not generate an additional environmental burden. In the present work, a simple protocol for collagen stabilization mediated by 2-chloro-4,6-diethoxy-1,3,5-triazine (CDET) and a tert-amine has been described. Different tert-amines were tested in combination with CDET in a standard amidation reaction between 2-phenylethylamine and benzoic acid. Best performing condensation systems have been further tested for the cross-linking of both collagen powder and calf hides. The best results were achieved with CDET/NMM giving high-quality leather with improved environmental performances.
Keywords: collagen cross-linking; green chemistry; sustainable leather tanning; triazine amidation agents.