Essential Element
Phosphorus is an essential element to life, underpinning many critical biological processes and driving the productivity and sustainability of global food systems.
The Science and Technologies for Phosphorus Sustainability (STEPS) Center is a convergence research community of diverse and leading scientists that addresses the complex challenges in phosphorus sustainability by integrating disciplinary contributions across the physical, life, social, and economic sciences. The STEPS vision is to facilitate a 25% reduction in human dependence on mined phosphates and a 25% reduction in losses of point and non-point sources of phosphorus to soils and water resources within 25 years, leading to enhanced resilience of food systems and reduced environmental damage.
The STEPS Partnership Program
STEPS REU Program
STEPS will support 15 students for ten weeks during Summer 2026 through a multi-institutional Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program.
Multi-institutional Research Experience
Convergence research through a collaborative cohort project.
Projects that align research and career interests.
A Roadmap to Phosphorus Sustainability
🌟Meet our November Scholar of the Month: Xinru Peng! 🌟
Xinru Peng is a second-year Ph.D. student in Nanoscience at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, working with Dr. Yirong Mo. Her research focuses on understanding phosphate adsorption mechanisms and identifying promising materials for more efficient phosphate removal. Using quantum mechanical calculations, molecular simulations, and machine learning, Xinru is currently exploring polymers that could offer new approaches to phosphorus recovery and sustainability.
Beyond her research, Xinru contributed to the STEPS community this summer by mentoring a STEPS REU student. Her mentee described her as a wonderful mentor and shared how much they enjoyed learning computational skills from her. Xinru’s commitment to research and mentorship makes her a valuable part of the STEPS network. Outside the lab, she enjoys hiking and rock climbing. Congratulations to Xinru on being our November Scholar of the Month!
🏆STEPS was well-represented last week at #CANVAS26 —and our amazing scholars brought home awards!
🥇Shakil Uddin won 1st place in the Graduate Student Oral Presentation Competition in the Advances in Nutrient Management session for his talk, "Phosphorus-Solubilizing Biofertilizers for Sweetcorn Production on Histosols." Shakil is advised by Dr. Jango Bhadha at the University of Florida.
🥇Pranseswar Ghosh won 1st place in the Graduate Student Oral Presentation Competition in the Sensor-Based Nutrient Management session for his talk, "Rapid Soil Phosphorus Determination Using Nix Spectro-L Color Sensor and Automated Machine Learning."
🥉Berson Valcin was awarded 3rd place in the Graduate Student Oral Presentation at the Soils and Environmental Quality session for his talk, "Comparative Evaluation of Metal-Based Adsorbents for Phosphorus Removal from Agriculturally Impacted Water."
Thanks to everyone who connected with STEPS researchers at the ASA, CSSA, and SSSA annual meeting in Portland!
🚨 New publication from STEPS—Convergence Research Compendium! 🌟
Do you work with large, interdisciplinary teams? Do you want to improve how you work together effectively, have stronger team cohesion, and learn from other convergence research teams?
📖 The Convergence Research Compendium draws from the experience of 11 NSF-funded research teams. It offers context-sensitive lessons, practical approaches, and emerging priorities intended to support continued learning and collective action across the convergence research community.
This open-access resource is available online now: https://doi.org/10.71889/5FYLANTBAK.34059519.
What if solving the world`s biggest environmental challenges starts with changing how we teach and learn? 🌎
Preparing students to tackle environmental challenges takes more than teaching science. It means helping them learn to work with people from different backgrounds and areas of study.
At the STEPS Center, we recognize that a single discipline cannot solve complex problems like phosphorus sustainability. We’re bringing education, research, and collaboration together to help prepare the next generation of students to address challenges like phosphorus sustainability.
#STEPSCenter #STEMEducation #InterdisciplinaryResearch #Sustainability
Swap the nugget, shrink your phosphorus footprint. 🌱
Plant-based nuggets take 3 steps from field to plate. Chicken takes 6 steps, and fewer steps mean fewer chances for phosphorus to slip into our waterways. Using this important mineral more efficiently helps keep our lakes and rivers healthy.
🚨 New article from STEPS! 💧
🚽 Can we improve recovery of phosphorus from waste streams? STEPS keeps proving that we can! Check out our team`s latest paper, "Turning building waste into fertilizer: Using cooling tower blowdown brine as a chemical source for critical mineral phosphate recovery from urine" in the Journal of Water Process Engineering.
🏫 Commercial and institutional buildings generate two underutilized waste streams: nutrient-rich human urine and mineral-rich cooling tower blowdown (CTB) water. This study developed a decentralized circular-economy resource recovery strategy that integrates these co-located building waste streams to recover phosphate, reduce reliance on commercial precipitation reagents, and enable simultaneous nutrient and water recovery. CTB achieved up to 98% phosphorus removal from urine without chemical addition. Membrane distillation (MD) concentrated Ca2+ and Mg2+ by approximately 3.2-fold while simultaneously recovering ~70% high-quality water.
♻️ Importantly, life cycle assessment indicated that replacing commercial magnesium reagents with CTB reduced environmental impacts, while MD utilizing existing cooling-system waste heat further improved process sustainability. These findings demonstrate the potential of transforming commercial buildings into decentralized systems for simultaneous nutrient recovery and water reuse.
Congrats to the team, including STEPS researchers Treavor Boyer and Lucas Crane!
🚨New paper alert!
A group of STEPS researchers have recently published "Community-Based Approaches Highlight Opportunities and Limitations in Addressing Socioeconomic Barriers to Water Quality Monitoring in the United States," in the Journal of the ASABE, published by ASABE - American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers!
In the perspective, they discuss the potential of community-based monitoring to address existing gaps in water quality monitoring through improved data collection, partnerships with government agencies, and the use of existing funding mechanisms, such as EPA`s Clean Water Act Section 319 program, while emphasizing the importance of addressing socioeconomic, technical, and institutional considerations in the design and implementation of these programs.
Congratulations to Chris Oates, Noah Rudko, Eric McLamore, Jay Rickabaugh, Khara Grieger, PhD, Rebecca Muenich, and Natalie Nelson.
To read, see link in comments!
📰 STEPS in the news! Our faculty and research lead, Becca Muenich, was recently featured in a story on Earth.com. The piece highlights her contributions to understand the available phosphorus in soils in the United States. Check it out!
🎙️Have you caught our latest podcast episodes? PhosForUs, a podcast created by STEPS scholars, explores the many facets of phosphorus sustainability.
💦 In a recent episode, scholar Barira Rashid talks with Dr. Becca Meunich about how scientists can help shape smarter science policy around phosphorus.
🎧 You can find PhosForUs on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! Link directly to our latest episde, "From Watersheds to Washington: How Science Can Shape Smarter Policy" in the first comment.
🏆Congratulations to our October Scholar of the Month, Cameron Good! Cameron is a graduate student in NC State`s Learning and Teaching in STEM PhD program, with a concentration in Science Education.
🌿Cameron is primarily interested in studying informal science education settings. Her current research involves interviewing informal science educators about the impacts of federal policy changes on their institutions. For her dissertation, she hopes to study how awe is experienced in science centers, and how that contributes to motivation and future learning. Her advisor, Dr. Gail Jones, compliments her innovative work and self-determination. She is noted as a valuable member of their research team who exemplifies the qualities of an outstanding STEPS Scholar.
Fun fact: Outside of her research, Cameron enjoys ballroom dancing as one of her hobbies! 💃
Are we over-feeding our crops? 🥔🌾
For years, farmers have added phosphorus to boost soil fertility, but new research from STEPS collaborators reveals a striking truth: more fertilizer isn`t always better. At one site, skipping phosphorus cut potato yields by 53%. At another nearby field, adding extra P did nothing at all.
Researchers studied potato farms in Northeast Florida to assess whether standard soil tests accurately predict if crops actually need more phosphorus.
Why is this work important?
For farmers: Precise soil calibration prevents throwing money away on unnecessary fertilizer while protecting crop yields.
For the planet: Excess phosphorus can leach out of sandy soils into surrounding waterways, feeding algal blooms. Applying only what the crop can use keeps rivers and lakes clean.
For consumers: Sustainable soil management ensures resilient, cost-effective food production for the potato chips and fries we love.
Refining soil-test guidelines allows us to farm smarter—distinguishing soils that truly need nutrients from those that are already set up for success.
Link to paper in the first comment👇
🥳 We just turned 5—now what?! Take a peek to hear what`s in store for STEPS in our next five years!
#nsffunded #research #phosphorus #sustainability
