Leather Industry Waste Management for Architectural Design
, Jorge Luis SantamarÃa Aguirre 1, Pablo Amancha 2 and Marcelo Pilamunga Poveda 1
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
There is no doubt that research on the application of circular processes in the leather industry is relevant and necessary. In my opinion, the added value of this research is that a new product (a decorative block for the design of architectural spaces) was created from tannery waste. Unfortunately, the research was not properly presented. I missed a clearly formulated aim of the investigation. What is the main point of the study? What novelty came out of this study in the development of the sustainable leather industry?
To my knowledge, sustainability research in the textile and leather industry is quite widely discussed, so I think the literature review should be updated.
In the Results and Discussion section, the new product was introduced very weakly. It is not clear how it was obtained, what are the mechanical and physical properties of the decorative block. From the abstract it could be understood that physical and chemical tests were performed for its validation, but I didn't find any results. This section should be substantially supplemented.
The conclusions are too long and do not reflect the essence of the obtained results.
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 1 Comments
Point 1: There is no doubt that research on the application of circular processes in the leather industry is relevant and necessary. In my opinion, the added value of this research is that a new product (a decorative block for the design of architectural spaces) was created from tannery waste. Unfortunately, the research was not properly presented. I missed a clearly formulated aim of the investigation. What is the main point of the study? What novelty came out of this study in the development of the sustainable leather industry?
Response 1: The design strategy focuses on identifying opportunities for new products, from an objective of improving processes in the final stage of production processes and providing alternatives to traditional waste disposal processes that affect the environment; the solution is addressed from a market approach, the solution of the productive sector and the companies that are part of it, in addition, the ease of production without technological complications.
The methodology focuses on three stages: investigation of the environment and definition of needs, design and development of the product, and validation of the product.
Once the raw material it’s detected in tanneries the waste are transported at the laboratory and prototyping atelier. The result represents a design process starting from a leather productive sector analysis and needs detection in order to transfer solutions in an specific activity with a new product. The final stage includes a series of technical, mechanical and physical analyzes for the validation and feasibility of the product.
Point 2: To my knowledge, sustainability research in the textile and leather industry is quite widely discussed, so I think the literature review should be updated.
Response 2: In the bibliographical references, research is added on the use of waste obtained from the leather thinning process, and sludge from the tannery process, mixed with other materials for the production of bricks for construction.
Point 3: In the Results and Discussion section, the new product was introduced very weakly. It is not clear how it was obtained, what are the mechanical and physical properties of the decorative block. From the abstract it could be understood that physical and chemical tests were performed for its validation, but I didn't find any results. This section should be substantially supplemented.
Response 3: We present more Technical information and laboratory test to complete the characterization of the product. The main question represent a view of a critic situation with leather tannery waste and necessary functional solutions. We believe on the relation of the two facts in order to generate a relevant topic.
The composite material obtained was characterized by a compression test according to the ASTM 785 standard, for a composition of 35% chips and 65% ceramic material, obtaining 15.72 MPa as a result.
Point 4: The conclusions are too long and do not reflect the essence of the obtained results.
Response 4: The extent of the conclusions was reviewed.
Reviewer 2 Report
The work of Samaniego et al. reports on a sustainable way to utilize leather industry waste by producing decorative blocks. The work is well structured and provides original research data that deserves publication after addressing several important issues.
1. The authors should include details of how they have dyed the decorative blocks.
2. How do the authors comment on the fire-resistance of their decorative blocks. Do they meet the criteria for safety? Please discuss.
3. Details on how the price is determined and how it can vary should be included.
4. What is the density of decorative blocks?
5. The authors should check for existing patents reporting similar methodologies.
6. The software for producing Figure 4 should be duly cited.
7. The note in Table 1 should be in English language.
8. The authors should describe how is measured the pH of a solid material.
It is mentioned in the comments to the authors (7).
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 2 Comments
Point 1. The authors should include details of how they have dyed the decorative blocks.
Response 1: The use of pigment for the color of the block is not part of this article, we believe that it would be relevant in a new article based on the possibilities of application in interior spaces and finishing styles.
Point 2. How do the authors comment on the fire-resistance of their decorative blocks. Do they meet the criteria for safety? Please discuss.
Response 2: Due to their composition of ceramic material (plaster, white cement) they can withstand temperatures between 120°C and 900°C. but exhaustive tests on fire resistance have yet to be carried out.
Point 3. Details on how the price is determined and how it can vary should be included.
Response 3: Added a description of the cost of the product and its price relationship with the competition
Point 4. What is the density of decorative blocks?
Response 4: The information is found in Table 2.
Point 5. The authors should check for existing patents reporting similar methodologies.
Response5: At present, the product obtained is in the process of registering a patent.
Point 6. The software for producing Figure 4 should be duly cited.
Response6: The information is done
Point 7. The note in Table 1 should be in English language.
Response 7: We translate the text.
Point 8. The authors should describe how is measured the pH of a solid material.
Response8: It is a necessary study for the mass production stage, but in this article we deal with the data of the external composition of the brick, due to the use of an alkaline shell typical of construction materials, this confines the residues in the center and represents a deeper study that could not be addressed in this article.
Reviewer 3 Report
What is the main question addressed by the research?
The authors propose a general strategy for managing leather industry waste for architectural reuse. The authors fabricated a decorative block from tannery waste to prove their strategy.
Do you consider the topic original or relevant in the field? Does it address a specific gap in the field?
I think the topic is relevant in the field. I don't think it addresses a specific gap because the strategies in the manuscript are too general, and their results and discussion cannot support that. Therefore, I suggest the authors focus on their decorative block product, and develop a more specific strategy.
What specific improvements should the authors consider regarding the methodology? What further controls should be considered?
The methodology is not properly presented. The authors should discussed more about their product, more details and more parameters about experimentation, fabrication and characterization. Not enough information is provided in the manuscript.
Are the conclusions consistent with the evidence and arguments presented and do they address the main question posed?
The main question the author proposed is too general and the evidence and arguments presented are insufficient to support. Thus I suggest the authors narrow down their topic.
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 3 Comments
Point 1 and 2: The authors propose a general strategy for managing leather industry waste for architectural reuse. The authors fabricated a decorative block from tannery waste to prove their strategy.
I think the topic is relevant in the field. I don't think it addresses a specific gap because the strategies in the manuscript are too general, and their results and discussion cannot support that. Therefore, I suggest the authors focus on their decorative block product, and develop a more specific strategy.
Response 1 and 2: The design strategy focuses on identifying opportunities for new products, from an objective of improving processes in the final stage of production processes and providing alternatives to traditional waste disposal processes that affect the environment; the solution is addressed from a market approach, the solution of the productive sector and the companies that are part of it, in addition, the ease of production without technological complications.
Point 3 and 4: The methodology is not properly presented. The authors should discussed more about their product, more details and more parameters about experimentation, fabrication and characterization. Not enough information is provided in the manuscript.
The conclusions are too long and do not reflect the essence of the obtained results.
Response 3: The methodology focuses on three stages: investigation of the environment and definition of needs, design and development of the product, and validation of the product.
Once the raw material it’s detected in tanneries the waste are transported at the laboratory and prototyping atelier. The result represents a design process starting from a leather productive sector analysis and needs detection in order to transfer solutions in an specific activity with a new product. The final stage includes a series of technical, mechanical and physical analyzes for the validation and feasibility of the product.
Response 4: We present more Technical information and laboratory test to complete the characterization of the product. The main question represent a view of a critic situation with leather tannery waste and necessary functional solutions. We believe on the relation of the two facts in order to generate a relevant topic.
The composite material obtained was characterized by a compression test according to the ASTM 785 standard, for a composition of 35% chips and 65% ceramic material, obtaining 15.72 MPa as a result.
