Chromium Waste Treatment from Leather Manufacture Using Electron Beam Radiation Technic; Pengolahan Limbah Kromium dari Industri Penyamakan Kulit Menggunakan Teknik Radiasi Berkas Elektron

Leather manufacture chromium waste treatment using chemical methods have an essential disadvantage, because of the production of the secondary contamination of wastes and separated sediments used by reagents. Therefore, a new technique is needed to solve this problem. The aim of the research to learn the advantages of electron beam radiation for chromium waste treatment. Water radiolysis can be produced by the interaction between electron beam and water or liquid substances. This phenomenon produces many reducing agents and ions that could reduce chromium concentrations in the liquid waste. Ethyl alcohol as a scavenger was added in the waste samples, then the pH of varied from 1, 4, 8 to 12, then were irradiated. Irradiation were done by Electron Beam Machine with dose 15, 25, and 35 kGy. After irradiation, chromium concentration in the samples were analyzed by AAS and UV-vis spectrophotometer. The results had shown that chromium could be reduced by high dose electron beam. The optimum reduction of chromium was achieved at liquid waste pH 8 and irradiation dose 35 kGy. (author)