Fahad Usman
@utp.edu.my
Department of Fundamental and Applied Sciences
Universiti Teknologi Petronas
Scopus Publications
Scopus Publications
Ahmad Nasir Labaran, Zakariyya Uba Zango, Giriraj Tailor, Ahmed Alsadig, Fahad Usman, Muhammad Tukur Mukhtar, Alhassan Muhammad Garba, Raed Alhathlool, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, and Osamah A. Aldaghri
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
AbstractThe utilization of plants for the production of metallic nanoparticles is gaining significant attention in research. In this study, we conducted phytochemical screening of Alstonia scholaris (A. scholaris) leaves extracts using various solvents, including chloroform, ethyl acetate, n-hexane, methanol, and water. Our findings revealed higher proportions of flavonoids and alkaloids in both solvents compared to other phytochemical species. In the methanol, extract proteins, anthraquinone and reducing sugar were not detected. On the other hand, the aqueous extract demonstrated the presence of amino acids, reducing sugar, phenolic compounds, anthraquinone, and saponins. Notably, ethyl acetate and chloroform extracts displayed the highest levels of bioactive compounds among all solvents. Intrigued by these results, we proceeded to investigate the antibacterial properties of the leaf extracts against two major bacterial strains, Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). All extracts exhibited significant zones of inhibition against both bacterial isolates, with S. aureus showing higher susceptibility compared to E. coli. Notably, the methanol extract displayed the most potent I hibitory effect against all organisms. Inspired by the bioactivity of the methanol extract, we employed it as a plant-based material for the green synthesis of copper nanoparticles (Cu-NPs). The synthesized Cu-NPs were characterized using Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), UV–visible spectroscopic analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The observed color changes confirmed the successful formation of Cu-NPs, while the FTIR analysis matched previously reported peaks, further verifying the synthesis. The SEM micrographs indicated the irregular shapes of the surface particles. From the result obtained by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopic analysis, Cu has the highest relative abundance of 67.41 wt%. Confirming the purity of the Cu-NPs colloid. These findings contribute to the growing field of eco-friendly nanotechnology and emphasize the significance of plant-mediated approaches in nanomaterial synthesis and biomedical applications.
Abdullahi Abbas Adam, Hassan Soleimani, John Ojur Dennis, Osamah Aldaghri, Raed Alhathlool, M.H. Eisa, Khalid H. Ibnaouf, Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir, Fahad Usman, Zakariyya Uba Zango,et al.
Elsevier BV
Zakariyya Uba Zango, Muhammad Abubakar Lawal, Fahad Usman, Abdelmoneim Sulieman, Hanan Akhdar, M.H. Eisa, Osamah Aldaghri, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, Jun Wei Lim, Kuan Shiong Khoo,et al.
Elsevier BV
Joo Yee Low, Cheng Seong Khe, Fahad Usman, Yarima Mudassir Hassan, Chin Wei Lai, Kok Yeow You, Jun Wei Lim, and Kuan Shiong Khoo
Elsevier BV
Fahad Usman, Kamarul Hawari Ghazali, Razali Muda, Nasrul Hadi Johari, John Ojur Dennis, Nissren Tamam, Abdelmoneim Sulieman, and Yuanfa Ji
Elsevier BV
Fahad Usman, Kamarul Hawari Ghazali, Yap Wing Fen, Fabrice Meriaudeau, and Rajan Jose
Elsevier BV
Zakariyya Uba Zango, Baranitharan Ethiraj, Fahad S. Al-Mubaddel, Mohammad Mahtab Alam, Muhammad Abubakar Lawal, Haliru Aivada Kadir, Kuan Shiong Khoo, Zaharaddeen Nasiru Garba, Fahad Usman, Muttaqa Uba Zango,et al.
Elsevier BV
Afzan Mahmad, Zakariyya Uba Zango, Teh Ubaidah Noh, Fahad Usman, Osamah A. Aldaghri, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, and Maizatul Shima Shaharun
Elsevier BV
Zakariyya Uba Zango, Kuan Shiong Khoo, Abdurrahman Garba, Haliru Aivada Kadir, Fahad Usman, Muttaqa Uba Zango, Wen Da Oh, and Jun Wei Lim
Elsevier BV
John Ojur Dennis, M. F. Shukur, Osamah A. Aldaghri, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, Abdullahi Abbas Adam, Fahad Usman, Yarima Mudassir Hassan, A. Alsadig, Wilson L. Danbature, and Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir
MDPI AG
Presently, the rising concerns about the fossil fuel crisis and ecological deterioration have greatly affected the world economy and hence have attracted attention to the utilization of renewable energies. Among the renewable energy being developed, supercapacitors hold great promise in broad applications such as electric vehicles. Presently, the main challenge facing supercapacitors is the amount of energy stored. This, however, does not satisfy the increasing demand for higher energy storage devices, and therefore, intensive research is being undertaken to overcome the challenges of low energy density. The purpose of this review is to report on solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The review discussed the PVA as a host polymer in SPEs followed by a discussion on the influence of conducting salts. The formation of SPEs as well as the ion transport mechanism in PVA SPEs were discussed. The application and development of PVA-based polymer electrolytes on supercapacitors and other energy storage devices were elucidated. The fundamentals of electrochemical characterization for analyzing the mechanism of supercapacitor applications, such as EIS, LSV and dielectric constant, are highlighted. Similarly, thermodynamic transport models of ions and their mechanism about temperature based on Arrhenius and Vogel–Tammann–Fulcher (VTF) are analyzed. Methods for enhancing the electrochemical performance of PVA-based SPEs were reported. Likely challenges facing the current electrolytes are well discussed. Finally, research directions to overcome the present challenges in producing SPEs are proposed. Therefore, this review is expected to be source material for other researchers concerned with the development of PVA-based SPE material.
Fahad Usman, Kamarul Hawari Ghazali, Razali Muda, John Ojur Dennis, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, Osamah A. Aldaghri, Ahmed Alsadig, Nasrul Hadi Johari, and Rajan Jose
MDPI AG
Kidney-related health problems cause millions of deaths around the world annually. Fortunately, most kidney problems are curable if detected at the earliest stage. Continuous monitoring of ammonia from exhaled breath is considered as a replacement for the conventional blood-based monitoring of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and kidney failure owing to its cost effectiveness, non-invasiveness, excellent sensitivity, and capabilities for real-time measurement. The detection of ammonia for renal failure requires a biosensor with a detection limit of 1000 ppb (1 ppm). Among biosensors, plasmonic biosensors have attracted considerable research interest due to their potential for ultra-sensitivity, single particle/molecular level detection capability, multiplexing capability, photostability, real-time measurement, label-free measurement, room temperature operation, naked-eye readability, ease of miniaturization via simple sensor chip fabrication, and instrumentation, among other features. In this review, plasmonic sensors for the detection of ammonia gas relevant to kidney problems (LOD ≤ 1 ppm) are reviewed. In addition, the utilized strategies and surface functionalization for the plasmonic sensor are highlighted. Moreover, the main limitations of the reported sensors are stated for the benefit of future researchers. Finally, the challenges and prospects of plasmonic-based ammonia gas biosensors for potential application in the monitoring and screening of renal (kidney) failure, as well as the endpoint of the dialysis session, are stated.
Sani Nazifi Dalhatu, Kolo Alhaji Modu, Auwal Adamu Mahmoud, Zakariyya Uba Zango, Abdullahi Bello Umar, Fahad Usman, John Ojur Dennis, Ahmed Alsadig, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, and Osamah A. Aldaghri
MDPI AG
Corrosion prevention has been a global phenomenon, particularly in metallic and construction engineering. Most inhibitors are expensive and toxic. Therefore, developing nontoxic and cheap corrosion inhibitors has been a way forward. In this work, L-arginine was successfully grafted on chitosan by the thermal technique using a reflux condenser. This copolymer was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The corrosion inhibition performance of the composite polymer was tested on mild steel in 0.5M HCl by electrochemical methods. The potentiodynamic polarization (PDP) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results were consistent. The inhibition efficiency at optimum concentration rose to 91.4%. The quantum chemical calculation parameters show good properties of the material as a corrosion inhibitor. The molecular structure of the inhibitor was subjected to density functional theory (DFT) to understand its theoretical properties, and the results confirmed the inhibition efficiency of the grafted polymer for corrosion prevention.
Zakariyya Uba Zango, Abdurrahman Garba, Zaharaddeen Nasiru Garba, Muttaqa Uba Zango, Fahad Usman, and Jun-Wei Lim
MDPI AG
Clay minerals have been recognized as one of the cheap and effective materials for wastewater remediation. Among the various clay minerals, montmorillonite (MMT) has received much attention due to its wide availability, low-cost and promising properties such as high porosity, mechanical strength, and cation exchange capacity. Additionally, MMT has high swelling properties. These features make it an ideal material for wastewater remediation applications. In addition, it possessed good cationic exchange capacity, making it easier to interact with various molecules. MMT and its composites exhibited good selectivity and catalytic activity for contaminants elimination from wastewater. Surface modification and functionalization have been identified as a way to improve the MMT’s adsorptive performance and endow it with light and light-harnessing properties. Thus, MMT composites, especially metal and metal-oxide nanoparticles, have shown good adsorption and photocatalytic activity toward the elimination/mineralization of various contaminants such as dyes, pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, and other organic and inorganic species. As such, MMT and its composites can be adopted as potential materials for wastewater remediation.
Murtala Uba Mohammed, Murtala M. Badamasi, Fahad Usman, Zakariyya Uba Zango, John Ojur Dennis, Abdul’aziz I. Aljameel, Mohammed Khalil Mohammed Ali, Osamah A. Aldaghri, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, and Tasneem Mohammed Hussein
MDPI AG
Noise remains an important challenge, particularly in informal settings where planning and regulation are relatively weak. This study aims at developing a model to predict noise in a largely informal urban Kano, the second most populated city in Nigeria. Sound level meter (SLM) 200 TL was used to measure noise at locations covering different land use: residential, industrial, commercial, educational, and administrative areas. Data were collected for seven days, and each day measurements were taken for six hours: 8–10 a.m., 12–2 p.m. and 4–6 p.m. Land use, population density, residential division, traffic volume, and land cover were used to generate a noise model using weighted geographic regression. The findings revealed that noise in the area is higher than the permissible limits set by the WHO and Nigeria’s regulatory agency. The model identified population density as the most influencing factor, followed by land cover, traffic volume and distance to the road, then land use. Seventy three percent of the model’s residual are below five, indicating a significant association between noise and the variables used. The R2 ranges between 18% and 26% depending on the time of the day. Noise in the area can be effectively control by paying serious attention to city planning and enforcing traffic regulation measures.
John Ojur Dennis, Mohammed Khalil Mohammed Ali, Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf, Osama Aldaghri, Naglaa F. M. Abdel All, Abdullahi Abbas Adam, Fahad Usman, Yarima Mudassir Hassan, and Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir
MDPI AG
In this study, a solution casting method was used to prepare solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) based on a polymer blend comprising polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), cellulose acetate (CA), and potassium carbonate (K2CO3) as a conducting salt, and zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) as a nanofiller. The prepared electrolytes were physicochemically and electrochemically characterized, and their semi-crystalline nature was established using XRD and FESEM. The addition of ZnO to the polymer–salt combination resulted in a substantial increase in ionic conductivity, which was investigated using impedance analysis. The size of the semicircles in the Cole–Cole plots shrank as the amount of nanofiller increased, showing a decrease in bulk resistance that might be ascribed to an increase in ions due to the strong action of the ZnO-NPs. The sample with 10 wt % ZnO-NPs was found to produce the highest ionic conductivity, potential window, and lowest activation energy (Ea) of 3.70 × 10–3 Scm–1, 3.24 V, and 6.08 × 10–4 eV, respectively. The temperature–frequency dependence of conductivity was found to approximately follow the Arrhenius model, which established that the electrolytes in this study are thermally activated. Hence, it can be concluded that, based on the improved conductivity observed, SPEs based on a PVA-CA-K2CO3/ZnO-NPs composite could be applicable in all-solid-state energy storage devices.
Zakariyya Uba Zango, John Ojur Dennis, A. I. Aljameel, Fahad Usman, Mohammed Khalil Mohammed Ali, Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir, Saja Algessair, Osamah A. Aldaghri, and Khalid Hassan Ibnaouf
MDPI AG
Successful synthesis of ZnO-chitosan nanocomposites was conducted for the removal of methylene blue from an aqueous medium. Remarkable performance of the nanocomposites was demonstrated for the effective uptake of the dye, thereby achieving 83.77, 93.78 and 97.93 mg g−1 for the chitosan, 5 wt.% ZnO-Chitosan and 10 wt.% ZnO-Chitosan, respectively. The corresponding adsorption efficiency was 88.77, 93.78 and 97.95 for the chitosan, 5 wt.% ZnO-Chitosan and 10 wt.% ZnO-Chitosan, respectively. Upon regeneration, good reusability of the nanocomposites was manifested for the continuous removal of the dye up to six consecutive cycles. The adsorption process was kinetically described by a pseudo-first order model, while the isotherms were best fitted by the Langmuir model.
Yarima Mudassir Hassan, Beh Hoe Guan, Lee Kean Chuan, Mayeen Uddin Khandaker, Surajudeen Sikiru, Ahmed Halilu, Abdullahi Abbas Adam, Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir, and Fahad Usman
MDPI AG
Worldwide, reservoirs are having serious challenges on crude oil removal due to various factors affecting its mobility; hence, the approach of oil production needs to be rectified. Recently, various nanoparticles (NPs) were discovered to have aided in oil displacement to improve oil production by modifying some reservoir conditions thereby reducing interfacial tension (IFT) and rock surface wettability. However, the injected NPs in the reservoir are trapped within the rock pores and become worthless due to high temperature and pressure. Hence, introducing energy to the nanofluids via electromagnetic (EM) waves can improve nanoparticle (NPs) mobility in the reservoir for the attainment of oil displacements. In this work, hybrid ZnO/SiO2 NPs were selected by considering that the combination of two dielectric NPs may produce a single nanofluid that is expected to make the fluids more electrified under EM waves. The result showed that ZnO/SiO2 NPs reduced the IFT (mN/m) from 17.39 to 2.91, and wettability (°) from 141 to 61. Moreover, by introducing the EM waves to the fluids, the IFT was further reduced to 0.02 mN/m from 16.70 mN/m, and solid surface wettability was also reduced from 132° to 58°. The advancement observed during exposure to EM waves was attributed to the energy propagated to the fluids that polarize the free charges of the NPs and consequently activate the fluids by creating disturbances at the fluid/oil interface, which resulted in reduced IFT and wettability.
Fahad Usman, John Ojur Dennis, A.I. Aljameel, M.K.M. Ali, O. Aldaghri, K.H. Ibnaouf, Zakariyya Uba Zango, Mahnoush Beygisangchin, Ahmed Alsadig, and Fabrice Meriaudeau
MDPI AG
Lung cancer is the most common and deadliest cancer type globally. Its early diagnosis can guarantee a five-year survival rate. Unfortunately, application of the available diagnosis methods such as computed tomography, chest radiograph, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasound, low-dose CT scan, bone scans, positron emission tomography (PET), and biopsy is hindered due to one or more problems, such as phenotypic properties of tumours that prevent early detection, invasiveness, expensiveness, and time consumption. Detection of lung cancer biomarkers using a biosensor is reported to solve the problems. Among biosensors, optical biosensors attract greater attention due to being ultra-sensitive, free from electromagnetic interference, capable of wide dynamic range detection, free from the requirement of a reference electrode, free from electrical hazards, highly stable, capable of multiplexing detection, and having the potential for more information content than electrical transducers. Inspired by promising features of plasmonic sensors, including surface plasmon resonance (SPR), localised surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), and surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) such as ultra-sensitivity, single particle/molecular level detection capability, multiplexing capability, photostability, real-time measurement, label-free measurement, room temperature operation, naked-eye readability, and the ease of miniaturisation without sophisticated sensor chip fabrication and instrumentation, numerous plasmonic sensors for the detection of lung cancer biomarkers have been investigated. In this review, the principle plasmonic sensor is explained. In addition, novel strategies and modifications adopted for the detection of lung cancer biomarkers such as miRNA, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), cytokeratins, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) using plasmonic sensors are also reported. Furthermore, the challenges and prospects of the plasmonic biosensors for the detection of lung cancer biomarkers are highlighted.
Zaka Ullah, Illani Nawi, Gunawan Witjaksono, Nelson Tansu, M. Irfan Khattak, Muhammad Junaid, and Fahad Usman
Elsevier BV
Aliyu Nuhu Shuaibu, Danjuma D. Dajab, and Fahad Usman
IEEE
High rate of occurrences of cardiovascular diseases has led to development of devices and systems that can measure and detect early warning symptoms of abnormalities. Recent studies show that cardiovascular diseases are the topmost leading cause of death, thus we need to detect symptoms of these diseases before they deteriorate. There is a need to develop systems that will monitor cardiovascular properties such as pulse rate and blood oxygen concentration. This will be very useful to people at high risks of cardiovascular ilness. In this paper, sparse representation technique has been used to monitor the heart rate using IP camera. The PPG signal is used to estimate the physical parameters using non-invasive camera. The result is compared with existing dictionaries such as discrete wavelet transform and discrete cosine transform for sparse signal reconstruction. The results show that the proposed method produced better performance Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) as compared to the start-of-the-art methods.
Yarima Mudassir Hassan, Beh Hoe Guan, Lee Kean Chuan, Hasnah Mohd Zaid, Mohammed Falalu Hamza, Abdullahi Abbas Adam, Fahad Usman, and Yusuff Afeez Oluwatobi
Elsevier BV
Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir, John Ojur Dennis, Mohd Fadhlullah Abd Shukur, Mohamed Mahmoud Elsayed Nasef, and Fahad Usman
Springer Singapore
Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir and
ESG
The advance of gel polymer electrolyte (GPEs) based on conducting salt-polymer has been a subject of concern recently due to their significant applications. This work presents a study of dielectric properties of GPE based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and potassium carbonate (K2CO3) (PVA-K2CO3) electrolyte for electrochemical applications. The electrolyte material was synthesized by mixing a conducting salt (K2CO3) with PVA in different proportions (from 10 50 wt. %) in order to study the effect of the salt on the dielectric properties of the electrolyte. The synthesized GPE was characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) to study electrolyte’s crystal phase. Both complex permittivity and complex modulus formalism (dielectric behaviour) of the electrolyte were analysed through electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The characterization result shows that the peak intensity of the PVA is significantly reduced with the increase of K2CO3 wt.%. which could be attributed to the decrease of PVA crystallinity which can enlarge the amorphous region of the polymer due to the strong plasticizing effect of the salt. High values of complex permittivity (dielectric constant and dielectric loss) were observed at low frequencies, which increased with increasing temperature, indicating an increase in conductivity. From the real part of electric modulus, the material is featured to be highly capacitive. Based on the asymmetrical peak shape of the imaginary part of electric modulus, the non-Debye type relaxation is predicted. Straight-line graphs were observed from the frequency dependency of loss tangent (tan δ), showing no single relaxation process is present.
Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir, John Ojur Dennis, Yas Al-Hadeethi, Muhammad Fadhlullah Bin Abd. Shukur, E. M. Mkawi, Nuha Al-Harbi, K. H. Ibnaouf, O. Aldaghri, Fahad Usman, and Abdullahi Abbas Adam
MDPI AG
Composite polymer electrolyte (CPE) based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) polymer, potassium carbonate (K2CO3) salt, and silica (SiO2) filler was investigated and optimized in this study for improved ionic conductivity and potential window for use in electrochemical devices. Various quantities of SiO2 in wt.% were incorporated into PVA-K2CO3 complex to prepare the CPEs. To study the effect of SiO2 on PVA-K2CO3 composites, the developed electrolytes were characterized for their chemical structure (FTIR), morphology (FESEM), thermal stabilities (TGA), glass transition temperature (differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)), ionic conductivity using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and potential window using linear sweep voltammetry (LSV). Physicochemical characterization results based on thermal and structural analysis indicated that the addition of SiO2 enhanced the amorphous region of the PVA-K2CO3 composites which enhanced the dissociation of the K2CO3 salt into K+ and CO32− and thus resulting in an increase of the ionic conduction of the electrolyte. An optimum ionic conductivity of 3.25 × 10−4 and 7.86 × 10−3 mScm−1 at ambient temperature and at 373.15 K, respectively, at a potential window of 3.35 V was observed at a composition of 15 wt.% SiO2. From FESEM micrographs, the white granules and aggregate seen on the surface of the samples confirm that SiO2 particles have been successfully dispersed into the PVA-K2CO3 matrix. The observed ionic conductivity increased linearly with increase in temperature confirming the electrolyte as temperature-dependent. Based on the observed performance, it can be concluded that the CPEs based on PVA-K2CO3-SiO2 composites could serve as promising candidate for portable and flexible next generation energy storage devices.
Abdullahi Abbas Adam, John Ojur Dennis, Yas Al-Hadeethi, E. M. Mkawi, Bashir Abubakar Abdulkadir, Fahad Usman, Yarima Mudassir Hassan, I. A. Wadi, and Mustapha Sani
MDPI AG
Supercapacitors are energy storage devices with high power density, rapid charge/discharge rate, and excellent cycle stability. Carbon-based supercapacitors are increasingly attracting attention because of their large surface area and high porosity. Carbon-based materials research has been recently centered on biomass-based materials due to the rising need to maintain a sustainable environment. Cellulose and lignin constitute the major components of lignocellulose biomass. Since they are renewable, sustainable, and readily accessible, lignin and cellulose-based supercapacitors are economically viable and environmentally friendly. This review aims to systematically analyze published research findings on electrospun lignin, cellulose, and lignin/cellulose nanofibers for use as supercapacitor electrode materials. A rigorous scientific approach was employed to screen the eligibility of relevant articles to be included in this study. The research questions and the inclusion criteria were clearly defined. The included articles were used to draw up the research framework and develop coherent taxonomy of literature. Taxonomy of research literature generated from the included articles was classified into review papers, electrospun lignin, cellulose, and lignin/cellulose nanofibers for use as supercapacitor electrode materials. Furthermore, challenges, recommendations, and research directions for future studies were equally discussed extensively. Before this study, no review on electrospun lignin/cellulose nanofiber-based supercapacitors has been reported. Thus, this systematic review will provide a reference for other researchers interested in developing biomass-based supercapacitors as an alternative to conventional supercapacitors based on petroleum products.