MEASUREMENT OF THE PROTEOLYTIC ACTIVITY OF BATE IN DRUM LIQUOR

A colorimetric procedure has been developed for assay of the proteolyt ic activity of bate in drum liquor using hide powder azure, a commerci ally available substrate. Stock bate powders or solutions can be assay ed with the same procedure. Results of the application of the assay to tannery samples are presented and the potential use of the procedure for quality control is discussed. The cost of chemicals and single-use equipment for a single assay is $4.00, and the run time 30 minutes. F ifteen samples can be run by one operator ''simultaneously'', i.e., wi th a one minute delay between one sample and the next. The procedure h as a relative standard deviation of less than 5%.