By Miftaudeen Raji

At the recently concluded African Nano Conference on Energy, Environment, and Health, leading nanotechnology expert Alhassan Sikpaam Issaka highlighted the critical need for West African nations, including Ghana and Nigeria, to adopt advanced nanotechnologies for water treatment and desalination. Issaka’s call to action comes in light of his groundbreaking research that has reshaped water treatment strategies and policies across Asia, Africa, and globally, evidenced by high-impact publications, international patents, and extensive collaborations.

Issaka has dedicated his career to designing cost-effective nanomaterials for wastewater treatment. His expertise in developing advanced materials to remove contaminants has significantly improved the safety and feasibility of wastewater reuse, a key component of urban water sustainability. “My research employs surface chemistry analysis, advanced analytical tools, and water chemistry techniques to design, characterize, and apply novel materials for solving water security challenges,” says Issaka.

The rapid urbanization and industrialization in many regions have led to severe water pollution, compromising water security worldwide. “The global community is left with one viable solution to water security – treating brackish or high-salinity water to make it usable,” Issaka emphasizes. His research focuses on tackling these issues through various innovative approaches, including collaborations with experts from China and the United States.

Traditional water desalination methods like membrane technology, distillation, and reverse osmosis have been the cornerstone of water treatment. These methods involve using semipermeable membranes and osmotic pressure to draw water from saline solutions, but they come with significant drawbacks. “The major drawbacks of these technologies are their high energy consumption and inability to selectively remove specific ions or impurities,” Issaka points out. “This renders them unsafe and cost-prohibitive.”

Issaka advocates for a more practical, cost-effective, and scalable solution: Capacitive Deionization (CDI). This emerging technology uses an electric field to remove target-specific ions from water, making it particularly effective for brackish water desalination. CDI has garnered attention for its lower energy consumption and potential for energy recovery compared to conventional methods.

In collaboration with colleagues from China and Australia, Issaka has made a groundbreaking discovery addressing a century-old problem in water desalination. The team invented a lithium-ion battery cathode electrode with a specially exposed surface that prevents manganese dissolution and ensures hundreds of reuse cycles without breakdown. This innovation, awarded an international patent, represents a significant technological breakthrough. “Our study highlights how freshwater can be recovered from brackish or seawater while simultaneously recovering valuable nutrients, offering an affordable and scalable solution,” explains Issaka.

Another one of Issaka’s recent papers showcased the development of a novel nanocomposite material from inexpensive bauxite waste. This advanced material has been successfully used in pilot-scale industrial wastewater treatment in China. The discovery underscores the potential of transforming waste materials into advanced applications for water technology. “Our findings demonstrate the ability to use nanocomposites to remediate both wastewater and drinking water to safe limits, as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),” Issaka notes.

Issaka’s research spans several cutting-edge areas in nanotechnology and materials science, focusing primarily on water and wastewater treatment. He has made significant breakthroughs in the development of novel nanomaterials for efficient contaminant removal, including the creation of advanced nanocomposites from inexpensive bauxite, the development of highly tailored Metal-Organic Frameworks(MOFs), significant advancement in anodic bioelectrochemical systems for resource recovery from waste,  Porous and Flexible Membranes for separations, and various Electrodes for capacitive deionization of saline water. His work on capacitive deionization and innovative first-ever lithium-ion battery cathode electrodes has addressed long-standing challenges in water desalination and reuse. 

His research breakthroughs have prompted a reevaluation of current adsorbents used for emerging contaminants and highlight the critical need for higher research investments, especially in Africa where critical technologies to combat global water insecurity are urgently needed. “Developing materials that can remove heavy metals, metalloids, and other emerging contaminants to safe limits is crucial for advancing science and ensuring water security,” Issaka noted.