Struvite in circular economy: Production techniques, emerging applications and market opportunities

Abstract

Struvite precipitation is an efficient approach to recover phosphorus and ammonium from wastewater to alleviate many operational as well as environmental issues. The sparingly soluble nature of struvite in water makes it a potential slow‐release fertilizer whose adequacy has been investigated in various soil‐based cultivation. However, struvite has diverse applications other than field usage which are yet to be explored. The review highlights the usage of struvite as a fertilizer in soil along with its other applications as a nutrient supplier in hydroponic systems, fire retardants, and sorbent for the adsorption of heavy metals, dye, and gases. The research gaps between the lab and the application of the struvite products in the market for its proper utilization have also been reported. Thus, struvite produced from wastewater can be a promising green chemistry that could replace many costly, synthetic, and harmful products, while conserving phosphorous resource at the same time.This article is categorized under: Climate and Environment > Circular Economy Emerging Technologies > Materials Sustainable Development > Goals