TSP's Journey through PhD Chemistry as a Bulldog

TSP: Mr. Waterways, water from Mines isn't mine! From a recent News Article by Elizabeth Miller titled " Climate Change Is Acidifying and Contaminating Drinking Water and Alpine Ecosystems" , published in November by Scientific American, the following points were derived. 1.      Water bodies may be contaminated via leaching of metals down the mountains as well as from mining environments. 2.      Some acidification and mineralization such as those from the mountain may be natural. 3.      This has a huge adverse effect on aquatic creatures. 4.      Climate change speeds up the process of aquatic ecosystem contamination. 5.      This could alter water quality in watersheds in mountains containing high concentrations of minerals. 6.      According to a research carried out by Garrett Rue,  a postdoctoral scientist studying waterways at the University of Colorado’s Institute for Arctic and Alpin...

(There is a quick question for you at the end.) Having read a number of articles with titles in the reference list at the end of this blogpost, I present a synopsis of what I aim to explore in the long run. The whole journey has to do with:                                Biochar in Environmental and Energy Applications From the inception of industrial revolution, global warming has been a major environmental concern as the earth continues to have an upward shift in its annual average temperature 1,2 . In the twenty-first century, Biochar continues to play a pivotal role in the advancement of all human societies transcending applicability in soil amendment and carbon capturing, 3 to water treatment and energy innovations. 4 TSP: What did you call it again, Biosh-what? Delving deeper into the stated areas, overwhelming majority of scientists have begun to associate their research with sustai...

Free Ticket for You Briefly. Before then, when something leaches, it dissolves out. Practically, this title should not be the ideal. Rather, before PAHs leach in, we reach out. Makes sense, right?  So, a paper that caught my attention this week is titled " Enhanced Immobilization of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Contaminated Soil Using Forest Wood-Derived Biochar and Activated Carbon under Saturated Conditions, and the Importance of Biochar Particle Size", and I am beginning to get some insight into how I can expand my research into related areas. One thing you may be aware about polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is that, being a group of organic contaminants, it is highly hydrophobic, carcinogenic, and non-biodegradable. Recall that when something is non-biodegradable, it can accumulate in the environment for a long period of time (for example, thousands of years). TSP: Ama reach out before you leach in PAHs exist in the environment naturally by volcanoes, or ant...

TSP: This is for Ms Conduct alone!   Introduction From time immemorial, misconduct has been a major component of all human societies, evident in the resulting backwardness that exists and metastasizes across the world. The act of shortcutting, to go through the right process in a bid to reduce stress, yet receive relief, accolades, money, trust, and any sort of prestige has for many years been part of the research community, and only very few of the overwhelming majority have been caught red-handed and subsequently sanctioned (McCook, 2017). According to the Office of Science and Technology Policy (2021), research misconduct involves the “fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results” . It is a behavior that intentionally or unintentionally neglects scientific ethical standards ( Pitak-Arnnop et al., 2008). When caught, the researcher or scientist ultimately, amongst many a thing loses reputation, nasc...

Shit happens! That's the consolatory phrase we say to ourselves after making a mistake. It is also what they say to us, nudging us to move on, to leave the past behind, to focus, or to stay alive.  TSP: When it catches fire, fire on to catch it. Of course, shit happened to me in the lab this week. No, I didn't have an acid burn. And yes, it was during an experiment. Once I knew that the samples I had previously prepared might not be enough for instrumental analysis, I decided after suggestions from my mentor to make new and more samples. Like everyone else, I did not like to start again. But sometimes, we only have to keep gazing at the end in mind so we do not slowly and eventually throw in the trowel. After all, it is my PhD not theirs.  Many want the success but hate the process, and if this is processed how can they make progress? I had initially prepared two samples of biochar activated with (i) steam and potassium dihydrogen phosphate ( KH2PO4)  (ii) water, calcium ...