The phosphorus crisis
Modern agriculture primarily relies on dwindling ressources of mined Phosphorus as fertilizer, half of which ends up in our lakes and rivers, as a key driver for toxic algal blooms.
PIARCS’ virtuous cycle
PIARCS’ phosphorus-hungry microbes (PHM) completely remove phosphate from wastewater and can be recovered as high density organic fertilizer:
- high-affinity: clean water produced with residual P levels below 30ppb, EPA-compliant
- high-loading (0.7 g P/ g dry weight): organic phosphorus fertilizer production. The resulting 41% P biomass exceeds the 13% P found in high grade rock phosphate.
- one-step microbial process, rapid (~20min contact time)
- the PHM (bacteria) can grow on cheap carbon sources such as the glycerol waste from biodiesel production
PIARCS’ phosphorus technology far outcompetes all other alternatives:
- PIARCS’ PHM enables a vertuous phosphorus cycle compatible with modern agriculture and industrialization.
Work in progress
The Deinococcus-mediated phosphate uptake requires the presence of molecules which I have yet to identify. Research is ongoing as this behavior is extremely rare.