Study on dissolution and recovery of waste wool by sodium sulfide system

In this research, keratin was extracted from the waste wool fiber using sodium sulfite as dissolving agent. The reaction results showed that the optimum conditions were as follows: the dosage of sodium sulfite 30 g/L, the sodium hydroxide 6 g/L, the sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) 10 g/L and in 90 degrees C for 3 h. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis and SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis were used to characterize the properties of regeneration keratin. Compared with the wool fiber, the regenerated keratin retains its chemical structure and thermal stability.