ISO 20136 Skin - Test Standard for Determination of Deterioration by Micro-Organisms

The ISO 20136 standard, developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), specifies a test method for determining the degree and rate of aerobic biodegradation of hides and skins of different animal origin, whether tanned or not, by indirect determination of CO.

The test material is exposed to an inoculum (activated sludge from tannery wastewater) in an aqueous medium. It is produced by the breakdown of collagen.

Conditions set in this document correspond to optimum laboratory conditions to achieve maximum biodegradability. However, they may not correspond to optimum conditions in the natural environment or to the maximum level of biodegradability.

Generally, the experimental procedure involves determining the degree and rate of degradation of the material under controlled conditions that allow for the analysis of the evolved carbon dioxide produced throughout the test. To this end, the test equipment complies with stringent requirements regarding flow, temperature and agitation control.

This method is applicable to natural polymers of animal stroma (animal tissue/skins), tanned (leather) animal hides and skins using organic or inorganic tanning agents, leather materials that do not inhibit the activity of microorganisms present in the inoculum under test conditions.

This standard specifies a method for determining the perishability of microorganisms in the skin.

Among the services provided by our organization within the framework of material testing services, there are also ISO 20136 standard tests.