Reagentless electrochemically assisted desorption for selective phosphate recovery from wastewater: Proof of concept and mechanism

•Reagent-free electrochemically assisted P desorption is proposed for the first time.•Electrochemically assisted P desorption is more efficient than chemical desorption.•Interfacial pH and electrodialysis play important roles in phosphate desorption.•Stacked EPDR is promising for efficient and low-cost recovery of P from wastewater.