Extraction and Characterization of Keratin from Waste Broiler Chicken Feathers

Abstract

The current study was to extract the keratin protein from waste broiler chicken feathers. Due to their high keratin content, chicken feathers offer a valuable source of protein. The two steps involved are treating sodium sulphide (Na₂S) and then extracting the protein from the mixture. After the feathers have been broken down using reducing agents, dilute hydrochloric acid (HCl) is added to the solution to precipitate the protein. The precipitated protein was repeatedly rinsed with distilled water and dissolved in a sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution to form a solution. The results indicate that a chicken feather has unique features. Keratin obtained from broiler chicken feathers had a yield of 81.1%, which is relatively high in cases of waste raw material conversion into value-added products. The prepared keratin was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) to investigate the chemical composition, thermal properties, crystallinity properties, and also physico-mechanical properties, including density. These findings suggest that chicken feathers can be used to extract protein.