Adama University

About: Adama University is a education organization based out in Nazrēt, Ethiopia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Adsorption. The organization has 840 authors who have published 1010 publications receiving 5547 citations. The organization is also known as: Adama Science and Technology University & ቴክኖሎጂ ዩኒቨርሲቲ, አዳማ ሳይንስና ቴክኖሎጂ ዩኒቨርሲቲ.

Lanthanum Doped Strontium Titanate Nanomaterial for Photocatalytic and Supercapacitor Applications

Abstract: We report the synthesis of lanthanum doped strontium titanate (Sr1-xLaxTiO3,x=0.1) by sol-gel method. The physical properties of the as-synthesized sample were systematically studied through X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX). Diffraction peaks in XRD supported the cubic formation of perovskite-type crystal structure. The image analysis of nanomaterial by SEM and TEM techniques disclosed aggregates of nanoparticles with grain size about 20 nm. The study by UV-DRS exposed the band energy gaps (Eg) of 3.4 eV for strontium titanate nanoparticles, respectively. The degradation studies for three days were carried out for three dyes. Malachite green and rhodamine blue, strontium titanate nanoparticles showed utmost photocatalytic activity for rhodamine blue under UV light irradiation (from 0 to 80 min) as compared to malachite green. Properties of electrochemistry were looked into by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge/discharge in 1M KCl electrolyte. The Sr0.9La0.1TiO3 electrode displayed maximal specific capacitance of 306.74 F g-1 at current 1mA from galvanostatic charge-discharge curve. The rare earth doped perovskite Sr0.9La0.1TiO3 nanomaterial exhibited increased surface area with superior supercapacitance property.

Modeling blue and green water resources availability at the basin and sub-basin level under changing climate in the Weyb River basin in Ethiopia

Abstract: The Weyb River basin, water from which is utilized for diverse water resources schemes, is one of the important rivers of Ethiopia. However, increase in temperature and change in both magnitude and its spatiotemporal distribution of rainfall under changing climate are adversely affecting the freshwater resources availability. This study aims to model the blue and green water resources availability under changing climate within Weyb River basin in Ethiopia at both basin and sub-basin level using ArcSWAT hydrologic model. All water balance components including blue water flow (sum of the water yield and the deep aquifer recharge), green water flow (actual evapotranspiration), and green water storage (soil water) at both entire basin and sub-basin level were examined. Results reveal that mean annual blue water flow, green water flow, and green water storage exhibit a rise in the entire basin and in all the sub-basins under representative concentration pathway (RCP)8.5/4.5/2.6 scenarios. The mean annual blue and green water flow increases by 28% and 30% under RCP8.5, 20% and 29.89% under RCP4.5, and 17% and 28.65% under RCP2.6 scenarios respectively, while the mean annual green water storage rises by 13.87%, 13.62%, and 13.60% under RCP8.5, RCP4.5, and RCP2.6 scenarios respectively in the entire basin. The sub-basin level analysis reveals that spatial variations of blue and green water resources availability in all the six sub-basins are very high as compared to that of the entire basin analysis under all RCP scenarios. This study provided significant insights into freshwater availability on a sub-basin level under future changing climate and it is paramount important to develop climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies at sub-basin level for optimum planning and management of freshwater availability within the Weyb River basin in upcoming period.

The Role of Medicinal Plants in Traditional Medicine in Adwa District, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

Abstract: In Ethiopia, medicinal plants had been used since ancient time and became an important source of health care. Though majority of the people in the study area depend on ethnomedicine to manage different ailments, the indigenous knowledge largely is not documented. As a result, an ethnobotanical survey was conducted with the objective of assessing the role of medicinal plants in traditional medicine. Data was collected by using semi-structured interview and group discussion. Twenty informants were purposefully selected based on indigenous knowledge and gender. Ethnobotanical data was analyzed with descriptive statistics and expressed in tables and flow charts. A total of 25 medicinal plants (22 families) recorded to treat human and livestock ailments. Medicinal plant habit analysis indicates that shrubs occupy the highest proportion (36%), followed by trees and herbs (28% for each) and climbers (8%). The most commonly used plant parts in the study area were leaves and roots. Although medicinal plants play a great role in the society, their sustainability is declining through time in the study area due to the increasing number of users, improper uses of the plants and poor conservation. Therefore, the conservation of these medicinal plants would be important.