Abstract
The discharge of phosphate species into aqueous environments is a key issue for eutrophication prevention. In this study, we investigate a mechanochemical treatment of calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) gel with different organic solvents with the aim of changing its structure and improving its phosphate species removal properties. The treatment leads to a collapse of the gel structure, resulting in the formation of defective structures in the silicate anion chains. The C-S-H gel sample milled with acetone exhibits better phosphate species recovery characteristics than does the unmilled C-S-H gel sample or the C-S-H gel sample milled with 1-propanol. Ultraviolet irradiation during phosphate recovery using the C-S-H gel sample milled with acetone further enhances the recovery properties.
Highlights
The element phosphorus is an essential nutrient for the growth of microorganisms
Peaks corresponding to calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) gel are present in the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of the unmilled sample
The concentrations of silicate species in the solutions were similar when the unmilled and milled samples were soaked in them for 6 h. These results suggest that the structural changes induced by the milling process enhanced the dissolution of the samples, resulting in the activation of precipitation through a reaction of the phosphate species with their counter cations
Summary
The element phosphorus is an essential nutrient for the growth of microorganisms. The existence of large amounts of phosphate species in water is one of the main causes of eutrophication. The discharge of phosphate species in water is a major environmental concern. Conventional techniques for the recovery of phosphate species from effluents include physical processes, chemical precipitation and biological techniques [1,2]. The chemical precipitation method is the most widely used one owing to its low cost and because the precipitated materials can be used as fertilizers. Materials containing magnesium [3], calcium [4], iron [5] or aluminium [6] have been
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