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Phosphorus recycling

Infraserv Höchst is involved in several phosphorus recycling projects, driving the economically and environmentally responsible use of this critical raw material.

Here is a list of the projects it supports.

What is phosphorus?

  • Phosphorus is an essential nutrient and building block for all people, plants and animals.

  • It is used to manufacture fertilizer and plays an indispensable role in agriculture and thus in supplying the population with basic foodstuffs.

A scarce resource

Phosphorus is a critical raw material that cannot be replaced. Sewage sludge is rich in phosphorus but cannot be used as-is due to its high heavy metal content.

To address this issue and also comply with the updated German Sewage Sludge Regulation (AbfKlärV), more efforts are being made to develop effective, sustainable strategies for recovering phosphorus from sewage sludge ash.

Our projects and partners

Define a plan for the production of phosphorus fertilizer based on sewage sludge ash and other residues

This project looked into producing fertilizer from sewage sludge ash and several additives. Various tests were performed; a successful fertilizer prototype was produced. The project sets the stage for the next goal: developing a suitable process for recycling phosphorus-containing sewage sludge ash at Industriepark Höchst to close the phosphorus loop and create a flagship project for Germany.

Impact of phosphorus recycling products from the cascading use of sewage sludge in Middle Hesse

This project aims to study the effect of recyclates on the quality and quantity of harvested products by conducting laboratory tests on agronomic quality as well as planting trials on fields in Hesse.

Regional Phosphorus Recycling in the Rhine-Main Region (RePhoRM)

The project aims to convert sewage sludge ash from the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region into fertilizer using a technical process at Industriepark Höchst, returning the phosphorus to the regional nutrient cycle. Most of the precious phosphorus is recovered using innovative technology so that existing resources can be reused.

That brings us one step closer to a sustainable solution for efficient regional phosphorus recycling.