Ba3Sc(PO4)(3):Eu2+,Tb3+ (BSP:Eu2+,Tb3+) phosphors were successfully prepared via conventional high-temperature solid-state reaction, their luminescence properties as well as energy transfer mechanism have been investigated in detail. The energy transfer mechanism was proposed to be the dipole-quadrupole mechanism, and the energy transfer efficiency was also estimated. BSP:Eu2+,Tb3+ phosphors showed a broad emitting band centered at 518 nm and several sharp emission peaks, which were assigned to the 5d -> 4f allowed transitions of Eu2+ ions and characteristic optical D-5(4)-F-7(J) (J=6, 5, 4, and 3) transitions of Tb3+ ions, respectively. The emission color of BSP:Eu2+,yTb(3+) exhibited a controlled luminescence evolution in the green area owing to the Eu2+-Tb3+ energy transfer process. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.