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Isaac Owusu

Community Health

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About

Mr. Isaac Owusu is a lecturer at the Centre for Disability and Rehabilitation Studies, School of Public Health, KNUST. He holds a Master of Arts degree in Disability Studies from the University of Leeds (UK); a Bachelor of Arts (Geography and Resource Development) from the University of Ghana and a Diploma in Education from the University of Education, Winneba. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at the School of Public Health, KNUST. His PhD work is focused on the use of assistive technology among persons with physical disability.He has published more than 15 articles in peer-reviewed journals and attended several conferences where he presented research findings. He once served as a reviewer for the Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development Journal. He was among a group of consultants engaged by the National Council for Persons with Disability (Ghana) to prepare a document used in training Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) on strategies for mainstreaming disability in Ghana. He authored the Livelihood section of the document.He is currently the Examinations Officer for the School of Public Health; a member of the examinations committee of KNUST Institute of Distance Learning (IDL) and a board member of KNUST Counselling Centre (KCC). He is also a member of the Ashanti Regional branch of the Ghana Society for the Physically Disabled (GSPD).

Research Summary

(inferred from publications by AI)

The researcher's work is centered around advancing membrane separation technologies for separating volatile fatty acids from waste streams, with a strong emphasis on their biodegradability. Their research extends into anaerobic digestion, where they explore methods to enhance biogas production and analyze microbial communities in pilot-scale reactors. The researcher also investigates the removal of fluorides using nanofiltration and reverse osmosis techniques, highlighting their role in water quality management. Furthermore, their work delves into energy recovery through anaerobic digestion, examining how substrate proportions influence the long-term performance of these systems. The impact of these technologies on the environment is significant, particularly in reducing fluorides and managing sulfur-based compounds like sulfonamide resistance genes. Additionally, the researcher studies SARS-CoV-2, which involves both wastewater treatment processes and life cycle assessments to monitor its fate across various stages. Their research underscores the importance of understanding microbial dynamics and energy recovery through membrane systems, contributing to sustainable practices in waste management and environmental monitoring.

Research Themes

All Papers

Bio-based volatile fatty acid production and recovery from waste streams: Current status and future challenges(2018)
Removal of fluoride and natural organic matter from natural tropical brackish waters by nanofiltration/reverse osmosis with varying water chemistry(2018)
Renewable energy powered membrane technology: Impact of pH and ionic strength on fluoride and natural organic matter removal(2017)
Waste to bioplastics: How close are we to sustainable polyhydroxyalkanoates production?(2020)
Production of volatile fatty acids through co-digestion of sewage sludge and external organic waste: Effect of substrate proportions and long-term operation(2020)
Long-term alkaline volatile fatty acids production from waste streams: Impact of pH and dominance of Dysgonomonadaceae(2021)
The study of structure of anaerobic granules and methane producing pathways of pilot-scale UASB reactors treating municipal wastewater under sub-mesophilic conditions(2019)
Co-fermentation of municipal waste streams: Effects of pretreatment methods on volatile fatty acids production(2021)
A pilot-scale study of granule-based anaerobic reactors for biogas recovery from municipal wastewater under sub-mesophilic conditions(2021)
Recovery of organic carbon from municipal waste streams(2020)
Co-Fermentation of Municipal Waste Streams: Effect of Pretreatment Methods on Volatile Fatty Acids Production(2020)
Volatile fatty acids production from municipal waste streams and use as a carbon source for denitrification: The journey towards full-scale application and revealing key microbial players(2023)
Conceptual system for sustainable and next-generation wastewater resource recovery facilities(2023)
Pre-concentration of ammonium to enhance treatment of wastewater using the partial nitritation/anammox process(2014)
Wastewater to Energy: Relating Granule Size and Biogas Production of UASB Reactors Treating Municipal Wastewater(2019)
Systems for ammonium concentration for further removal in the partial nitritation/anammox technology.(2012)
UASB/Anammox technology: A sustainable approach for energy recovery and cost effective nitrogen removal from wastewater(2014)
Implications of humic acid, inorganic carbon and speciation on fluoride retention mechanisms in nanofiltration and reverse osmosis(2016)
Nanofiltration and reverse osmosis for defluoridation: The role of inorganic carbon(2016)
Fluoride removal by nanofiltration and reverse osmosis: impact of pH, organic and inorganic carbon(2017)
Life Cycle Assessment of an Innovative Food Waste Management System(2020)
Application and adaptation of a scale-up framework for life cycle assessment to resource recovery from waste systems(2022)
Discovery of sulfonamide resistance genes in deep groundwater below Patna, India(2024)
Wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 from aircraft to citywide monitoring(2025)
The fate of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 and pepper mild mottle virus at various stages of wastewater treatment process(2024)
Hyperplex PCR enables highly multiplexed analysis of point mutations in wastewater: Long-term SARS-CoV-2 variant surveillance in Sweden as a case study(2025)
SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance at the Arlanda airport and Stockholm city during spring 2023: a comparison of variant distribution at different sectoral levels from aircraft, airport region to city wastewater treatment plants(2024)
Circular city concept for future biorefineries(2022)
DETECTION OF ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE GENES IN GROUNDWATER UNDER THE RAPIDLY DEVELOPING CITY OF PATNA, INDIA(2023)
Proof of concept: Recovery of high-purity volatile fatty acids by membrane system from source-separated waste streams(2025)

Collaboration Network

No collaborations found in the dataset.

About This Profile

This profile is generated from publicly available publication metadata and is intended for research discovery purposes. Themes, summaries, and trajectories are inferred computationally and may not capture the full scope of the lecturer's work. For authoritative information, please refer to the official KNUST profile.