Meet Bridget Mutuma, the only Kenyan Scientist awarded ARISE Fellowship of Over Kshs. 70M
Meet Bridget Mutuma, the only Kenyan Scientist awarded ARISE Fellowship
Bridget Mutuma, a Research Associate at the Department of Chemistry was awarded the Africa Research Initiative for Scientific Excellence (ARISE) of Over Kshs. 70M to be implemented in the next five years. The ARISE grant is funded by the Eurpoean Commussion through the African Academy of Sciences in partnership with the African Union.
In an exclusive Interview with Corporate Affairs, Bridget revealed that she is setting up a lab at the Department of Chemistry, she revealed, ‘a two-stage chemical vapor reactor, a UV-visible spectrophotometer, and a thermal gravimetric analyzer, among others. We are building human capacity by training two undergraduate students, two masters’ students, and two doctorate students.’
The Research Project that Dr. Mutuma is leading is titled, ‘From Plastic waste to low-cost carbon nano-reactors for use in monitoring environmental pollutants and nano- plastics.’
The nano-plastics project aims to assess the distribution of micro-plastics and nano-plastics from selected cities and coastal ecosystems in Kenya. The plastics and micro-plastics from the selected areas will be converted into low-cost carbon nanomaterials using environmentally friendly routes. The utilization of plastic waste is an economical way of waste recycling whilst producing value-added materials for sustainable consumption of materials. The use of these carbon nanomaterials (nano-reactors) as catalysts will be applied in the degradation of organic pollutants and nano-plastics providing a platform for decreasing plastic pollution in the cities. The applied holistic strategy will create job opportunities as well as human capacity building through nanotechnology training of postgraduate students. The nanomaterials generated will also be applied in the sensor technology to detect pollutants in the air thus addressing key global environmental challenges. The project will contribute to the transformation of Africa into a knowledge-based and innovation-led continent.
Dr. Mutuma has extensive postdoctoral experience in nanomaterials, sensor technology and energy storage systems. Her research interest is in the development of plastic waste-derived carbon nanomaterials/core-shell nanostructures for use in gas sensors, photocatalysis, energy storage and conversion systems. Her research findings have been published in over 32 peer-reviewed articles and presented in several national and international conferences.
Dr Mutuma aspires to be a leading scientist in the area of sensor technology, photocatalysis and solar energy conversion as she seeks to provide solutions for mitigating plastic and air pollution through innovation and infrastructure development in Africa.
