Tensile Properties of Indigenous Kenyan Boran Pickled and Tanned Bovine Hide

Tensile properties of pickled and tanned indigenous Kenyan Boran bovine hide and how they are influenced by tanning and sampling direction were determined. Freshly flayed bovine hide was commercially procured and conventionally prepared prior to tanning. The hide was then cut into two identical halves, one half was left at pickled stage and the other was chrome-tanned at Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute. Specimens were cut in both parallel and perpendicular sampling directions using press knife in template. Eight rectangular samples, each of dimensions 50 mm and 25 mm in template, were cut from each sampling direction in dumb-bell shape. The specimens were then conditioned in standard atmosphere of temperature 23 2 C and humidity of 50 5 % R. H. for 48 hours prior to testing. Tensile strength, tear strength and percentage elongation were tested using Instron Testing Machine (Model 1101) at a jaws separation speed of 100 mm/min and gauge length of 100 mm. Tanning significantly increased tensile strength but decreased tear strength and percentage elongation. Specimens cut parallel to the backline had significantly higher tensile strength than perpendicularly cut specimens whereas perpendicularly sampled specimens had higher tear strength and elongation than parallel sampled specimens.