Phosphorus (P)-rich incinerated sewage sludge ash (ISSA) presents significant potential for P recovery.However, the chem. and mineralogical complexity of ISSA makes P recovery challenging during leaching due to the dissolution of various impurity elements.To address this, a novel process involving CaO modification, selective leaching, and sequential precipitation was proposed to enable efficient and cost-effective P recovery from ISSA.Initially, ISSA was treated with CaO at high-temperature, which successfully converted all non-apatite phosphorus (Al/Fe-phosphates) into acid-soluble apatite phosphorus (Ca/Mg-phosphates).The selective leaching of P was then optimized by investigating key parameters.Under the optimal conditions (particle size of 0.04-0.05 mm, liquid-to-solid (L/S) ratio of 100:1, pH of 2.0, and temperature of 25 °C), a P dissolution efficiency of 85% was achieved in 40 min, with minimal dissolution of Al, Fe, and Si (less than 5%).To recover phosphate from the leachate, pH was adjusted using NaOH and Ca(OH)2, resulting in the precipitation of phosphate ions.The co-precipitation of P and Ca was most effective within the pH range of 5.0-8.0, achieving a maximum total P recovery efficiency of 78.06%.The sequential precipitation process, which involved initial pH adjustment with NaOH followed by Ca(OH)2, minimized alkali consumption and enhanced the purity of phosphate.The precipitate obtained at pH 8.0 was primarily composed of hydroxyapatite (HAP), with a P2O5 content of 34.71% and low contents of impurity elements.This study offered a sustainable and efficient pathway for P recovery from ISSA.