LWV21108 Recovery of phosphorus from waste water using Magnetic Adsorption Desorption (BO-55-001-018)

In this project, we aim to demonstrate the feasibility of a novel and integrated process for removing and recovering P-compounds from municipal wastewater and process water streams from the food industry. The process is based on the reversible and selective complexation of P-compounds with magnetizable iron
nanoparticles. Novel aspects of the process are that it allows for i) the recovery, in-situ, of the P-compounds, ii) the regeneration of the magnetic particles for continuous use within the process, and iii) direct application in different wastewater streams, i.e., it does not require chemical precipitation onto sludge and anaerobic digestion afterward. Additionally, the process includes an energy-efficient electrochemical process, i.e., electrodialysis, to produce in-situ the chemicals used for recovery and regeneration of the magnetic particles.
The immediate impact of this process is that recovered P-compounds can easily be taken up and valorized to fertilizers for instance. Most importantly, it can potentially target the removal of other P-compounds than
phosphate and contribute to efficiently closing the phosphorus cycle.