Young scientist develops cost-effective water treatment for leather tanneries

By Mediatrix P. Cristobal

MANILA, Jan. 28 — A student from University of the Philippines Los Banos has developed a cost effective waste water treatment that could solve the perennial problems of leather tanneries in Bulacan.

“To provide an option for local tanneries, this research aimed to determine the technical feasibility of sodium sulfite reduction and sodium hydroxide precipitation as the end-of-pipe treatment for the removal of chromium from typical tannery wastewater,” Maria Ivy dela Cruz, a fifth year chemical engineering student of the UPLB said.

Dela Cruz’ 131-page award-winning research seeks to end the search for a cost effective wastewater treatment method for tanneries in the Philippines.

Provinces like Bulacan rely heavily in leather industry but post processing waste disposal remains a problem.

Her project “Removal of Chromium from a local Chrome-tannery wastewater by Sodium Sulfite reduction coupled with Sodium Hydroxide Precipitation” used a combination of reduction and precipitation chemical reactions using sodium sulfite and sodium hydroxide, respectively.

Sodium sulfite is a white crystalline compound used in preserving food, silvering mirrors, developing photographs and making dyes.

Dela Cruz said she used sodium sulfite in her research as it was a cheaper and an easier to handle chemical agent that could transform the chromium’s toxic compound to a less harmful substance.

Sodium hydroxide, commonly called lye or caustic soda, is used as a drain cleaning agent for clearing clogged drains.

Dela Cruz said that lye was a “less expensive, cost-effective, convenient and safe alternative” compared to other metal removal treatment methods like alkali precipitation.

The project won this year’s Department of Science and Technology – Bank of the Philippine Islands (DOST-BPI) Best Project of the Year, where she was bestowed with P200,000 research grant, a trophy and P50,000 cash prize.

Dr. Ester B. Ogena, director of the Science Education Institute of DOST, said the government’s partnership with BPI in giving recognition to outstanding undergraduate researches in the country, was one of the many steps SEI had taken in creating a critical pool of scientists and engineers in the country.

"Through competitions like this, we are able to discover talents in science and mathematics and entice them to venture into science careers,” she said.

Ogena said that the country was in dire need of more practical researches to be able to propel its economy towards sustainable development.

"Research, especially in the sciences, remains one of the rays of hope that developing countries see to enable them to join the ranks of high performing economies. The generation of scientific knowledge is important in providing the backbone to the upgrading of a developing country,” she said.

John Carlo Malabad, a fourth year Biology student also from UPLB, won second for his project called “Genetic Diversity in Representative Accessions of Cultivated Rice Species using Grain Quality Candidate Genes through Ecotilling (Targetting Induced Local Lesions in Genomes).” He won a P30,000 cash prize and a trophy.

Winning third with a cash prize of P10,000 and a trophy is Michael Casas, a fourth year Chemistry student from Ateneo de Davao University for his research, “ Optimization of Pectin Extraction from the Peels of Citrus microcarpa (Kalamansi) and Proximate Analysis of the Residue for Selected Parameters.

The DOST-BPI Best Project of the Year is an annual research competition aimed at giving recognition and incentives to students who excel in specialized fields of science namely: mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering, computer science, biology and environmental science. (PNA) RMA/MPC

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