Utilization of steel slag for phosphorus removal from wastewater treatment plant

Phosphorus is one of the major nutrients that contribute in eutrophication of lakes and other natural water resources. This study presents the potential of steel slag as adsorption material in removing phosphorus particularly in total phosphorus and orthophosphate forms from wastewater. Wastewater samples were collected from Bukit Perdana Treatment Plant in Batu Pahat, Johor. Laboratory experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of various particle sizes, contact time and dosage of steel slag on total phosphorus and orthophosphate forms. Results revealed that particle size of 9.5 mm showed 100% removal for total phosphorus whereas more than 90% removal achieved for orthophosphate using particle size of 20 mm. Complete removal were also observed when solutions were shaken for 24 hours using 20g (total phosphorus) and 60g (orthophosphate) of adsorbent. Dosage of 80 g was determined to provide better removal for both total phosphorus and orthophosphate. Throughout this research, it can be concluded that phosphorus can be removed from wastewater sample through the utilization of steel slag