Phosphorus (P) is essential for all living things, playing a central role in the molecules that hold and process genetic information, drive energetic metabolism, and provide cellular and body structural integrity. P is also essential for sustaining high levels of food production as a critical component of fertilizer. However, losses of P from the food system from fields, feedlots, cities, and towns are the predominant cause of water pollution globally, driving algal blooms in lakes and oceans that impair drinking water and fisheries and amplify greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, the mining of phosphate rock is environmentally damaging while the geological sources of P that support fertilizer production are finite and highly concentrated in just a few countries, raising issues of short-term access and long-term availability. Meeting these sustainability challenges will require a portfolio of technological, institutional, and social innovations that reduce P demand, increase the efficiency of P use in the food system, and establish robust recycling flows that return P for reuse in the food system. This talk will review the current status of the P sustainability challenge and highlight several arenas where chemistry and materials science can play a major role in accelerating the transition to a more sustainable phosphorus future. Arenas for these developments include sensor technologies, next-generation fertilizer formulations, phosphorus adsorbents / desorbents for use in P recovery, and soil and sediment biogeochemistry. I will highlight some emerging approaches in these areas and discuss neglected topics that need prioritization as well as barriers that may hinder widespread adoption of needed approaches.

Towards a sustainable phosphorus system: Can chemistry help catalyze a transition?

ACS Fall 2021

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