Phosphorus recovery from waste - methods review

According to sustainable development principles, searching for alternative phosphorus sources, especially possible ways of its recycling from waste, should be treated as a preferential problem of the phosphorus industry. The ways admitted as most important are: - phosphorus recovery from municipal and industrial sewage and from sewage sludge, - utilization of phosphorus from manure, - management of waste from meat industry. The forecasts elaborated at the end of the last century, indicate that over 50% of the world phosphorus resources in use today will be depleted during the next 60 - 70 years. That fact contributes to increase of market prices of phosphorus products. This work presents possible directions for the recovery and management of sewage sludge, meat meal and manure as a phosphorus source for chemical industry.