Application of essential oils of thyme as a natural preservative in leather tanning

The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of using essential oils of Thymus vulgaris as an alternative preservative for chromed leather. The differences between the chemical composition of commercial and pure essential oils of thyme were determined. It was observed that these differences have an influence on the antibacterial activity of essential oils. Gram-positive bacteria were found to be more sensitive to the essential oils of thyme than Gram-negative bacteria. The bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa had a low sensitivity to the action of the selected essential oils of thyme, but the leather samples treated with the essential oils of thyme remained resistant to the action of these bacteria. As the main result of this study, it was concluded that the essential oil of thyme could be used as a preservation agent in the leather tanning industry. The leather preserved with 2-(thiocyanomethylthio)benzothiazole had weaker protection after four weeks compared to the samples treated with the essential oil of thyme when the amount of the used essential oil was not less than 3% of the wet-blue mass. The essential oil of thyme was the more active component in the mixture of essential oil and synthetic biocide used for the preservation of leather.