Controllable fabrication of lanthanum-based metal-organic frameworks for efficient phosphorus recovery from water

Abstract

In this study, lanthanum metal-organic frameworks (La-MOFs) with different microstructures were synthesized by changing the synthesis temperature (100, 130, 160, and 190 °C) and used for efficient phosphorus recovery from water. The results of adsorption isotherm measurements showed that the process of phosphorus recovery using the synthesized La-MOFs is more consistent with the Langmuir model. In addition, the kinetic behavior of this process is better described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The synthesized La-MOFs can achieve efficient phosphorus recovery in water over an initial pH range of 3.0–11.0. The common ions found in water hardly affect the phosphorus recovery efficiency of the La-MOFs. Importantly, these materials have the potential to recover phosphorus from real water bodies. The synthesized La-MOFs exhibited excellent regeneration performance. The phosphorus recovery process is mainly governed by complexation between the La-MOFs and phosphorus species, as well as ligand exchange mechanisms. This study provides new technologies and methods for phosphorus recovery and reuse, including the treatment of water bodies that are threatened by eutrophication.