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Phosphorrückgewinnung aus LD - Schlacke mittels oxalsaurem Leaching

Translated title of the contribution: Phosphorus Recovery from LD slag by Oxalic Acid Leaching

Research output: ThesisMaster's Thesis

Abstract

This work studies the use of oxalic acid leaching for recovering phosphorus from LD slag as struvite (MgNH4PO4.6H2O). In Austria, the recycling of LD slag is currently limited due to legal requirements, meaning that large quantities of this by-product of crude steel production are landfilled or temporarily stored. LD slag contains significant amounts of phosphorus, which is classified as a critical raw material at the European level. First, the mineralogical phase distribution of phosphorus in LD slags and the state of the art are presented. Based on this background, leaching experiments are carried out with 3 mol l-1 oxalic acid dihydrate at 80 °C to selectively dissolve the phosphorus - containing C2S - C3P - solid solution. The time - resolved leaching test shows that under suitable conditions, the extracted fraction of PO43- is 93,3 % after 30 minutes. At the same time, iron is inevitably transferred into solution, mainly in the form of soluble iron (III) oxalate complexes. Through the following photochemical precipitation of the leachate under UV radiation, the dissolved iron is selectively precipitated as insoluble iron (II) oxalate dihydrate (FeC2O4.2H2O). 95,4 % of the dissolved phosphate remains in the photorecipitation filtrate, while only 2,1 % of the total iron is not recovered. The low - iron, phosphate - rich leachate is the solution for further phosphorus recovery as struvite by increasing the pH to the alkaline range. The results in the formation of a crystalline precipitate that exhibits a characteristic coffin - like shape under the microscope. In addition, the molybdenum blue reaction confirms the presence of phosphate in the precipitate. Oxalic acid - based leaching followed by photochemical precipitation can effectively separate phosphorus and iron. Struvite precipitation constitutes the final process step and demonstrates the suitability of this approach for recovering phosphorus in terms of producing a potentially marketable fertilizer product.
Translated title of the contributionPhosphorus Recovery from LD slag by Oxalic Acid Leaching
Original languageGerman
Awarding Institution
  • Montanuniversität
Supervisors/Advisors
  • Weiß, Christian, Supervisor (internal)
Award date26 Jun 2026
Publication statusPublished - 2026

Bibliographical note

embargoed until 11-05-2031

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

  1. SDG 2 - Zero Hunger
    SDG 2 Zero Hunger

Keywords

  • LD-slag
  • oxalic acid
  • leaching
  • recovering phosphorus

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