Phosphorus sustainability: a case for phytic acid as a biorenewable platform

Phosphorus (P) compounds play a crucial role in modern society; fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides that maintain global crop outputs and many life-saving pharmaceuticals all contain P. Most P-compounds are sourced from phosphate rock (PR) in a highly energy intensive and redox-inefficient manner. Moreover, the ever-expanding human population has hastened consumption of PR deposits and as peak P use approaches, new technologies that enable alternative, biogenic sources of P to effectively supplement PR are imperative to diversify our global P-platform moving forward. Herein, we propose that phytic acid (PA), a source of biogenic P generally considered a low value agricultural waste-product, could serve as a key platform chemical in future biorefineries. PA possesses several attractive features in this regard; it is relatively non-toxic, highly abundant (& SIM;35 million metric tonnes produced annually by agricultural crops) and exists in the P(v) oxidation state that suggests upcycling could be performed in a redox efficient manner. Finally, it is proposed that if PA were to gain traction as a commodity platform, the flow of P in the form of unabsorbed PA excreted by non-ruminant animals into land and waterways could be significantly reduced.

Automated summary

Phosphorus compounds are essential in modern society, but their sourcing from phosphate rock is energy intensive and inefficient. With the depletion of phosphate rock deposits, alternative sources of phosphorus such as phytic acid (PA) should be explored. PA, considered an agricultural waste, has attractive features like being non-toxic, abundant, and in a redox efficient state. Furthermore, the use of PA as a commodity platform could reduce phosphorus flow into the environment.