报告题目1：Sustainable Electro-energentics and Electrochemil Uminescent Sensing of Disease Biomarkers
报告人：Emmanuel Iwuoha院士 南非西开普大学
报告题目2：Affordable and Scalable Electrodes Derived from Invasive Plants for Sustainable Energy Storage: Advancing the Circular Economy
报告人：Shimelis Admassie教授 埃塞俄比亚亚的斯亚贝巴大学
报告题目3：Functionalities of Nickel Selenide Quantum Dot Reactors for Nevirapine in Wastewater
报告人：Usisipho Feleni教授 南非大学
邀请人：彭新文教授
报告时间：2024年4月1日9:30-12:00
报告地点：造纸D306会议室
欢迎广大师生踊跃参加！
制浆造纸工程国家重点实验室
轻工科学与工程学院
2024年3月28日
报告人1简介：
Emmanuel Iwuoha is an A-Rated Scientist of the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa, the South African Research Chair (Tier 1) for NanoElectrochemistry and Sensor Technology and Professor of Chemistry at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). He was admitted as a Chartered Chemist (CChem), Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC) and Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (FAAS) in 1990, 1999 and 2018, respectively. He is the Founder and Director of the UWC Sensor Laboratories (SensorLab) since 2002 as a centre of excellence in electrochemistry. His research focus is on novel smart functional nanomaterials for next-generation electroanalytical sensor, battery, supercapacitor and solar cell applications. He has published over 380 research articles, given more than 72 plenary and keynote presentations and graduated 80 PhDs. Prof Iwuoha received the 2015 UWC Vice-Chancellor's Distinguished Researcher Award. In 2020, the RSC Council conferred an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry Award (HonFRSC) on him – being one of the first two recipients in Africa. He won the 2020 edition of the NRF Champion of Research Capacity Development and Transformation Award. Also, Prof Iwuoha was admitted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa (FRSSAf) in 2023. He is a member of the advisory boards of the Journal of the American Chemical Society Gold (JACS Au), Analytical Chemistry and Bioelectrochemistry. Prof Iwuoha presently serves as an Associate Editor of NPJ Clean Water, a Topical Editor for Frontiers in Sensors and a Guest Editor for Materials Today Communication, among others.
Title：
Sustainable Electro-energentics and Electrochemil Uminescent Sensing of Disease Biomarkers
Abstract：
Widespread availability of affordable diagnostic tests for the early detection of diseases and access to clean energy, are very necessary for the attainment of the United Nation (UN) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Since the inception of the UN 2030 Agenda, the University of Western Cape Sensor Laboratories (SensorLab) has been exploring ways of contributing toward the realisation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), through its work on materials electrochemistry, electro-photovoltaic energy and diagnostic biosensors (aptasensors, immunosensors and phenotype-sensors) for disease biomarkers and drugs. Accordingly, the electrochemistry, electro-energetics, electroluminescence, electronics and nanoarchitectonics of functional smart nanomaterials designed by SensorLab, are harnessed for the development of renewable energy cells (battery, solar cell and supercapacitor) and sensor devices. Examples of SensorLab’s promising electrochemical and photovoltaic energy cells will be presented. The seminar will cover ultra-sensitive next generation biosensing protocols, such as bipolar or contactless electrochemiluminescence (c-ECL) and phase selective alternating current voltammetry (PSACV). The design (including computer aided design) and operational principles of the c-ECL- and PSACV-based sensors will be discussed. Some examples of diagnostic electro-biosensors for tuberculosis (TB), myocadiac infarction and breast cancer disease biomarkers will be included in the presentation.
报告人2简介：
Professor Shimelis Admassie is a full professor of physical chemistry within the Department of Chemistry at Addis Ababa University (AAU), Ethiopia. His academic journey encompasses both undergraduate and graduate research projects focusing on electrochemistry. Prof. Admassie's extensive research portfolio, conducted at AAU and Linkoping University, Sweden, spans various domains, notably renewable energy conversion and storage utilizing organic polymers for solar energy conversion, storage, sensors, and wastewater treatment technologies.
Following the completion of his doctoral studies, Prof. Admassie undertook postdoctoral and visiting scientist roles at esteemed institutions including Linkoping University (Sweden), Princeton University (USA), Nottingham University (UK), and the University of Hasselt (Belgium), among others. He has also contributed to undergraduate education through teaching assignments at the International School of Advanced Materials (ISAM) at South China University of Technology (China).
In addition to his academic endeavors, Prof. Admassie has served his home University in various leadership capacities, including Head of the Department of Chemistry, Director of the Materials Science Program, and Staff Development Head at Addis Ababa University. Recognized for his scholarly contributions, he is a fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences and currently holds the secretary position of the Natural Science Working Group within the Academy.
Title：
Affordable and Scalable Electrodes Derived from Invasive Plants for Sustainable Energy Storage: Advancing the Circular Economy
Abstract：
Africa boasts abundant renewable energy resources including solar, hydrothermal, wind, and geothermal sources. However, these resources are intermittent, necessitating affordable and scalable storage solutions. Traditional electrochemical energy technologies such as batteries, fuel cells, and supercapacitors are promising but often utilize expensive and environmentally detrimental materials. To address this, there is a need to employ extremely low-cost raw materials, with the resulting materials comprising no more than 75% of the total to reduce expenses. Leveraging unwanted and invasive plants could be particularly effective in this regard, advancing circular economy principles by repurposing these materials into valuable resources for energy storage applications, thereby contributing to sustainable development.
Realizing this vision requires coordinated research and innovation efforts, supported by adequate funding. During the presentation, common challenges encountered by African researchers and lessons learned over the years will be shared and discussed, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and resourcefulness in overcoming obstacles and driving progress in renewable energy technologies.
报告人3简介：
Prof Usisipho Feleni is an Associate Professor in the same institute. Her research expertise is on electrochemical biosensors, electrocatalysis/catalysis for monitoring disease biomarkers (pathogens for SARS-CoV-2) and pharmaceutical contaminants in water. She has published more than 70 papers in the areas of various nanomaterials and their applications in electrochemical sensors, electrocatalysis and photocatalysis. Additionally, she has graduated 3 MSc students at UNISA and is currently supervising/co-supervising 10 MSc and 9 PhD students including several WRC Graduate interns (i.e., 3 PhD, 4 MSc, 5 BSc). Prof Feleni obtained external research grants from TIA, NRF, SAASTA, TESP, RSC, WiR and University of Michigan STEM-Africa Initiative. Her recent awards and recognition include: (i) 2022/2023 TW-Kambule NSTF Award: Emerging Researcher; (ii) 2023 South African Women in Science, Distinguished Young Women Researcher; (iii) Standard Bank Top Women Awards: Top Women Leader in STEM 2023; (iv) 2022 Principal’s Award for Excellence in Research; (v) the University of Michigan African Presidential Scholars (UMAPS) Fellowship 2021/2022; (vi) the South African Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) TATA Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Award 2016; and (vii) the L’Óreal-UNESCO Women in Science Doctoral Fellowship Awards 2016. She has made several keynote and guest speaker presentations at National and International Universities.
Title：
Functionalities of Nickel Selenide Quantum Dot Reactors for Nevirapine in Wastewater
Abstract：
The occurrence of antiretroviral drugs (ARVDs) in most water sources in South Africa has been of major concern over the past decade. Though they have been reported to occur in low concentrations (low ng/L and µg/L), their increasing concentration poses health risks to humans, animals, and aquatic organisms. This accelerates the emergence of antiretroviral resistance. Nevirapine (NVP) is one of the most extensively used ARVs worldwide for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission and has been often detected in water sources. Very limited research is available on the electrochemical detection of nevirapine in real wastewater samples, as most studies present its detection in human serum or pharmaceutical formulations. Herein, we report the use of an electrochemical sensor tool for the detection of NVP in real wastewater samples. The electrochemical sensor consists of functionalised nickel selenide quantum dot (NiSe2QD) with banana peel extract (BPE) and was embedded on a gold electrode for NVP detection. The BPE-NiSe2QD material was fully characterised using FTIR, SEM, HR-TEM, XRD, SAXS, and UV-Vis. Differential pulse voltammetry was used to study the electrochemical responses of Au/BPE-NiSe2QD/Nafion electrochemical sensor to NVP, with a characteristic oxidation peak at 0.76 V. The sensing tool obtained a low limit of detection value of 0.024 pM (0.0064ng/L), and a sensitivity of 5.52μA/pM with a linear range of 0.25 – 0.63 pM, respectively. Thus, the reproducibility, stability, and repetitive usability shown by the proposed sensor made it suitable for the determination of nevirapine in real wastewater samples. Recommendations include the use of a combination of different and stronger capping agents from various plant extracts to ensure the stability of the QD on the electrode surface.
Keywords：
Antiretroviral drugs; banana peel extract; electrochemical sensor; nevirapine; nickel selenide quantum dots.