Why Care about Phosphorus Recovery?
Photo of struvite crystals.
- All living organisms on earth need P to survive
- Almost 100% of the P consumed ends up in human waste
- The only P resource (phosphate rock) is non-renewable
How to Recovery P from Wastewater?
- Biological phosphorus removal (BPR) process
- More sustainable than P removal by chemicals
- Mediated by polyphosphate accumulating organisms (PAO)
- Allows P recovery in the form of struvite (a proven fertilizer)
Challenges
- BPR operations require careful monitoring of PO43- ions to:
- Ensure a stable microbial community
- Optimize carbon dosage
- There is no sensor available for measuring PO43- ions, making monitoring and real-time controls more difficult
Objectives
- Develop a novel sensor technology for measuring PO43- ions
- Improve efficiency and reduce cost of BPR process