IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/agiwat/v307y2025ics0378377424005869.html

Treated wastewater reuse for recharge in agricultural fields: Retention dynamics and geochemical modeling of macronutrients in soils

Author

Listed:
  • Kumar, Ajit
  • Yadav, Basant

Abstract

Reusing treated wastewater (TWW) with high concentrations of macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) in Agricultural-Based Managed Aquifer Recharge (AgMAR) presents various challenges to soils, crops, water resources, microbes, public health, and economics. This study investigates the behavior of macronutrients in agricultural soil during TWW recharge through AgMAR, focusing on the effects of mineral formation during the recharge process. Batch experiments, kinetic studies, and pH edge experiments were conducted to understand the retention behaviors of ammonium (NH4+), phosphate (PO4−3), and Potassium ion (K+) in soils. Visual MINTEQ was employed to evaluate the saturation indices of nutrient dissolution, equilibrium, and precipitation conditions, using macronutrient concentrations from TWW and soil mineral data as inputs. The Freundlich isotherm model provided the best fit for the experimental results for ammonium and potassium, with correlation coefficients of 0.98 and 0.99, respectively. For phosphorus, the Temkin model showed the best fit, with a correlation coefficient of 0.96. Retention behaviors varied with pH: ammonium and potassium exhibited higher retention under basic conditions, while phosphate demonstrated greater retention in acidic conditions. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model best described the retention kinetics observed in the experiments. The saturation index (SI) results revealed that manganese hydrogen phosphate (MnHPO4) fully precipitates and calcium phosphate Ca3(PO4)2 precipitates at pH levels above 8, while other nutrients remained in dissolution. This study highlights that nutrient retention from TWW effluent enhances nutrient availability for plants. However, the precipitation of certain forms, such as MnHPO₄ and Ca₃(PO₄)₂, may clog soil pores, restricting recharge pathways. These findings support the reuse of TWW as a sustainable method for supplementing agricultural nutrients and ensuring safe groundwater recharge, while also offering a safe disposal solution for wastewater treatment plants

Suggested Citation

  • Kumar, Ajit & Yadav, Basant, 2025. "Treated wastewater reuse for recharge in agricultural fields: Retention dynamics and geochemical modeling of macronutrients in soils," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:307:y:2025:i:c:s0378377424005869
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2024.109250
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377424005869
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.agwat.2024.109250?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pedrero, Francisco & Kalavrouziotis, Ioannis & Alarcón, Juan José & Koukoulakis, Prodromos & Asano, Takashi, 2010. "Use of treated municipal wastewater in irrigated agriculture--Review of some practices in Spain and Greece," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(9), pages 1233-1241, September.
    2. Liang Zhang & Hugo A. Loáiciga & Meng Xu & Chao Du & Yun Du, 2015. "Kinetics and Mechanisms of Phosphorus Adsorption in Soils from Diverse Ecological Zones in the Source Area of a Drinking-Water Reservoir," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-15, November.
    3. Grinshpan, Maayan & Furman, Alex & Dahlke, Helen E. & Raveh, Eran & Weisbrod, Noam, 2021. "From managed aquifer recharge to soil aquifer treatment on agricultural soils: Concepts and challenges," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    4. Scott Jasechko & Hansjörg Seybold & Debra Perrone & Ying Fan & Mohammad Shamsudduha & Richard G. Taylor & Othman Fallatah & James W. Kirchner, 2024. "Rapid groundwater decline and some cases of recovery in aquifers globally," Nature, Nature, vol. 625(7996), pages 715-721, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Azunre, Gideon Abagna & Amponsah, Owusu & Takyi, Stephen Appiah & Mensah, Henry & Braimah, Imoro, 2022. "Urban informalities in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA): A solution for or barrier against sustainable city development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    2. Pedrero, Francisco & Grattan, S.R. & Ben-Gal, Alon & Vivaldi, Gaetano Alessandro, 2020. "Opportunities for expanding the use of wastewaters for irrigation of olives," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    3. Dahlke, Helen E. & Ganot, Yonatan & Clark, Nicholas & Bali, Khaled & Putnam, Daniel H., 2025. "On the suitability of non-dormant alfalfa to tolerate off-season groundwater recharge during winter and spring periods," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 320(C).
    4. Liu, Fei & Liu, Congli & Zhen, Pinna & Guo, Xiaoshuai & Wang, Shou, 2025. "Groundwater quality variability with inter-basin water transfer and overexploitation control in an agriculture-dominant subregion of North China Plain," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 317(C).
    5. Ejovi Akpojevwe Abafe & Yonas T. Bahta & Henry Jordaan, 2022. "Exploring Biblioshiny for Historical Assessment of Global Research on Sustainable Use of Water in Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-34, August.
    6. Lyu, Tianxue & Ruan, Chuanxia & Zhang, Tingting & Yi, Lixin & Li, Long, 2025. "Ra and Rn isotopic tracing of faulting and water-rock interaction in carbonate geothermal reservoirs," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 326(C).
    7. Dimitra Lazaridou & Anastasios Michailidis & Konstantinos Mattas, 2019. "Evaluating the Willingness to Pay for Using Recycled Water for Irrigation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-8, September.
    8. Jinchen Yang & Huaina Wu & Xinxin Yang & Suhua Zhou & Desai Guo & Renpeng Chen, 2026. "Land uplift induced by groundwater rise in thick deep soft clay strata and its impact on metro tunnels: a case study from Tianjin in China," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 122(6), pages 1-32, March.
    9. Maestre-Valero, J.F. & Gonzalez-Ortega, M.J. & Martinez-Alvarez, V. & Gallego-Elvira, B. & Conesa-Jodar, F.J. & Martin-Gorriz, B., 2019. "Revaluing the nutrition potential of reclaimed water for irrigation in southeastern Spain," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 218(C), pages 174-181.
    10. José Gescilam S. M. Uchôa & Paulo Tarso S. Oliveira & André S. Ballarin & Antônio A. Meira Neto & Didier Gastmans & Scott Jasechko & Ying Fan & Edson C. Wendland, 2024. "Widespread potential for streamflow leakage across Brazil," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    11. Christina Caron, 2024. "Eroding Natural Capital: An Alternative Explanation for the Secular Decline in Productivity Growth," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 47, pages 109-147, Fall.
    12. Soltani Tehrani, Rozita & Mosaddeghi, Mohammad Reza & Afyuni, Majid & Ayoubi, Shamsollah & Shirvani, Mehran & van Dam, Jos, 2025. "Changes in near-saturated infiltration and soil hydraulic characteristics due to wastewater irrigation in green space," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 319(C).
    13. Soumya Balasubramanya, 2025. "Groundwater Use in Agriculture in South Asia: The Role of Technology," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 56(3), pages 474-484, May.
    14. Feder, Frédéric, 2021. "Irrigation with treated wastewater in humid regions: Effects on Nitisols, sugarcane yield and quality," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 247(C).
    15. Nitheshnirmal Sadhasivam & Leonard Ohenhen & Mohammad Khorrami & Susanna Werth & Manoochehr Shirzaei, 2025. "Building damage risk in sinking Indian megacities," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 8(12), pages 1467-1479, December.
    16. Jemal Fito & Stijn W. H. Hulle, 2021. "Wastewater reclamation and reuse potentials in agriculture: towards environmental sustainability," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 2949-2972, March.
    17. Grinshpan, Maayan & Turkeltaub, Tuvia & Furman, Alex & Raveh, Eran & Weisbrod, Noam, 2022. "On the use of orchards to support soil aquifer treatment systems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    18. Pedrero, Francisco & Allende, Ana & Gil, María I. & Alarcón, Juan J., 2012. "Soil chemical properties, leaf mineral status and crop production in a lemon tree orchard irrigated with two types of wastewater," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 54-60.
    19. Yuan Li & Rui Wang & Hongbo Ma & Jian-Min Zhang, 2025. "Rising groundwater table due to restoration projects amplifies earthquake induced liquefaction risk in Beijing," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-11, December.
    20. Simon A. Schroeter & Alice May Orme & Katharina Lehmann & Robert Lehmann & Narendrakumar M. Chaudhari & Kirsten Küsel & He Wang & Anke Hildebrandt & Kai Uwe Totsche & Susan Trumbore & Gerd Gleixner, 2025. "Hydroclimatic extremes threaten groundwater quality and stability," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-9, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:307:y:2025:i:c:s0378377424005869. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/agwat .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.