When phosphorus from land-based human activities, such as the application of fertilizers to farmers’ fields, ends up in our waterways it can have detrimental effects. Algae grows faster than ecosystems can handle, reducing the quality of drinking water and depleting the oxygen that fish and aquatic life need to survive.
The Groundwater Geochemistry and Remediation Research Group, led by David Blowes and Carol Ptacek, has been perfecting its PhosphexTM technology over the past two decades. It is an adaptable water-treatment system that uniquely uses slag, a by-product of the steel industry, to effectively and inexpensively remove phosphorus.
Among the top technologies for phosphorous removal in the world, PhosphexTM was one of 10 teams from around the world selected to advance to the Pilot Stage of the George Barley Water Prize in 2017. Teams advancing to the Grand Challenge will be announced in late-2018.
“PhosphexTM helps to solve a serious and complicated water pollution challenge,” he says, “and it is sustainable because it recycles waste materials.”