Rapid and efficient removal of organophosphorus pollutant and recovery of valuable elements: A boosted strategy for eliminating organophosphorus from wastewater

•The mZVI/H2O2 system can effectively remove 97.1 % TP and 97.31 % OP in 10 min.•The valuable elements of the flocculation product were recovered using a simple method.•The mZVI/H2O2 system exhibited high remediation efficiency for actual industrial wastewater.•The removal mechanisms of THPS were involved in oxidation and flocculation processes.•The remediation and recovery strategies showed an excellent economic feasibility. Considering the significant hazards of organophosphorus compounds (OPs) and the potential crisis of phosphorus (P) resource shortage, there is a great necessity to develop economically feasible, highly effective, and sustainable strategies to remove OPs and recover P resources. In this study, low-cost microscale zero-valent iron (mZVI) was used to activate hydrogen peroxide for the rapid and efficient elimination of Tetrakis(hydroxymethyl)phosphonium sulfate (THPS) from the aquatic environment. Compared to the conventional Fenton reaction and commercial mZVI, mZVI/H2O2-based Fenton-like reaction exhibited superior removal performance for THPS. The removal mechanism of the mZVI/H2O2 system for THPS was thoroughly elucidated through the identification of reactive oxygen species, characterization analysis, and theoretical calculation. Furthermore, the valuable components of the degradation products were successfully recovered through thermally induced precipitation of the sample followed by high-temperature calcination. The mZVI/H2O2 system has demonstrated significant advantages in removing organic compounds from various types of actual wastewater and improving the biodegradability of the wastewater. This study presented an environmentally friendly and highly efficient strategy to eliminate OPs pollution and recover P resources. It also provided an easy-to-operate method for remediating actual industrial wastewater. [Display omitted]