Clarkson Professors Awarded $749,000 USDA Grant to Develop Technology to Remove Phosphate from Agricultural Fields and Prevent Nutrient Pollution
About 80 percent of the mined phosphate ends up in fertilizers, pesticides and animal feeds, but almost half of this is lost through soil leaching and erosion.
- About 80 percent of the mined phosphate ends up in fertilizers, pesticides and animal feeds, but almost half of this is lost through soil leaching and erosion.
- Tile drainage is used on many poorly drained agricultural fields to extend growing seasons and increase crop yields.
- The Clarkson team will develop a sorbent and field-ready filtration system to capture and recover phosphate from tile drainage and reduce the phosphate burden to watersheds.
- This process will significantly decrease environmental impact and provide a renewable phosphate supply, improving sustainability of agricultural practices.