[Kosh]

Would it be possible to somehow synthetically make phosphorus?

[Bobboau]

what, you mean like the element? like transmutation? sort of technically, but it's extremely expensive and not worth doing past the prove you could stage.

[Flipside]

There are a few resources left where phosphorous can be removed from solutions using moderately simple means, even urine has Phosphorous in it, but the best solution is to use Seawater, however Phosphorous only really exists in large quantities in the Ocean floor, which is difficult and expensive to get to.

That said, we'd better make it cheaper, cos it looks pretty certain we are going to need to get there.

[ssmit132]

Phosphorus (Greek phosphoros was the ancient name for the planet Venus, but in Greek mythology, Hesperus and Eosphorus could be confused with Phosphorus) was discovered by German alchemist Hennig Brand in 1669 through a preparation from urine, which contains considerable quantities of dissolved phosphates from normal metabolism. Working in Hamburg, Brand attempted to create the infamous Philosopher's stone through the distillation of some salts by evaporating urine, and in the process produced a white material that glowed in the dark and burned brilliantly. Since that time, phosphorescence has been used to describe substances that shine in the dark without burning.

Just found this while seeing why we need Phosphorus. A bit odd that he was trying to make the Philosopher's stone from urine. 

[karajorma]

It's yellow. It must contain gold!

[Solatar]

It's 2008, we can't turn lead into gold yet?

What have chemists been wasting their time on all these years?...

[Polpolion]

Synthesizing diamonds.

[Scorpius]

Its kinda funny that we have to go find phosphorus when our bodies need it for almost everything: DNA (phosphate backbone), proteins, cell membranes (phosopholipids), energy (ATP, ADP NADPH) and our bones contain a pretty decent sum of the stuff.

[neo_hermes]

Grave digging anybody?

[Mefustae]

Grave digging anybody?

I'll get my kit.

[neo_hermes]

i've got an idea...since everybody has a large amount of phosphorus why don't we just start taking it from the folks that die.. soylent green (sp?) anybody?

[Topgun]

i've got an idea...since everybody has a large amount of phosphorus why don't we just start taking it from the folks that die.. soylent green (sp?) anybody?

StRiD@R, akenbosch or takashi?

anyway, they should have started grave digging a long time ago.