I see chemistry as inseparable from societal justice, human dignity —Humphrey Samuel, chemist, doctoral researcher

Humphrey Sam Samuel is a First-Class chemistry graduate and a green chemistry advocate with over 70 peer-reviewed scholarly articles to his name. He is a doctoral student at Emory University, Georgia, United States, where he is a graduate teaching assistant, the secretary of the Pi Alpha Chemical Society, and has won grants and leadership awards. In this interview by KINGSLEY ALUMONA, he speaks about his work, how chemistry can impact society, and other issues.

What was your idea of the societal significance of chemistry before studying the course at the Federal University Wukari, Taraba State (FUW), where you graduated with a First Class?

I have seen the devastating impacts of environmental challenges on human health, and I am posed with this question: What innovative, low-cost, scalable technologies can be developed to remedy these challenges? The key role of chemistry in addressing humanity and environmental challenges is one reason for studying Chemistry.

My undergraduate journey at FUW changed everything. My final year dissertation on the photocatalytic degradation of Methylene Blue using Bismuth Tungstate, supervised by Dr E. A. Kamba, was a turning point, showing me how chemistry could directly address water pollution challenges facing millions of people in developing nations. This dissertation was presented at the 8th Annual Symposium of the American Chemical Society Nigeria Chapter in Akwa Ibom State in 2023, the Pan African Chemistry Congress in Dakar, Senegal in 2024, and the 5th Commonwealth Chemistry Event in 2024, and later presented at the 1st ChemTrend Conference at FUW in 2024, where it was published in the conference proceedings.

Looking back now, I now see chemistry as fundamentally inseparable from societal justice, sustainability, and human dignity.

Your profile does not indicate that you have a master’s degree. So, how were you able to proceed to a PhD programme at Emory University in the US?

Most top American universities offer direct-entry PhD programmes for exceptional candidates holding a bachelor’s degree, incorporating master’s-level training in the first two years. What matters most is your academic record, research experience, and letters of recommendation. I graduated with First Class Honours in Industrial Chemistry, had already published peer-reviewed articles as an undergraduate, and had built significant research experience, achievements that earned me a Graduate Teaching Assistantship worth over $40,000 annually at Emory University, one of the highest-ranking Chemistry PhD programmes in the United States.

Your work reveals that your research interests are in physical chemistry and environmental chemistry. How are these research interests shaping your career and long-term scholarly endeavours?

My work has been very instrumental in advancing sustainable environmental chemistry, physical chemistry and computational chemistry globally. My publications on sustainable wastewater treatment, green nanotechnology for CO₂ capture, and nanoparticles for emerging contaminant removal have accumulated over 712 citations on Google Scholar as of May 2026, with an h-index of 16 and an i10-index of 29, meaning that scientists across more than 50 countries are actively reading, citing, and building upon my research. My peer review contributions spanning more than 40 manuscript reviews across 19 international journals, supporting 121 authors in improving their research quality in 2025 alone, have directly contributed to maintaining the quality and integrity of the global scientific literature. My research has been recognised through the prestigious Royal Society of Chemistry Sustainable Laboratory Grant, the 2026 CAS Future Leaders Award, and features in Chemical and Engineering News, confirming that my work is shaping conversations at the very highest levels of global science.

Your bio indicates that you have authored and coauthored over 70 published research works, published 11 conference proceeding articles, and published six articles in scholarly books. How are you able to fund and accomplish this feat?

Relentless dedication, strategic collaboration, and an unwavering passion for advancing knowledge. Collectively, my research has impacted over 60,000 scientists across more than 50 countries worldwide, reflecting the truly global reach and significance of my contributions to the field of chemistry. I have secured the RSC Sustainable Laboratory Grant worth £8,670, the ACS Festival Grant worth $1,400, and various RSC and IUPAC bursaries. Most of my publications appear in Scopus-indexed journals that charge no publication fees, making high-impact publishing accessible. This body of work opened doors to my PhD at Emory, the Yale Green Chemistry Certificate Programme, and the 2026 CAS Future Leaders Award.

What societal problem would you like to investigate or address through your doctoral project work, and why?

My doctoral research focuses on characterising actinide bonding using ab initio computational methods, contributing to the safer management of nuclear waste. The urgency of nuclear waste management is global: nuclear energy currently provides approximately 10 per cent of the world’s electricity, and the safe disposal of the radioactive waste it generates remains an unsolved challenge in science and engineering.

READ ALSO: Explore business potentialities of Chemistry, Don tasks students

My doctoral work seeks to bridge the gap between computational chemistry and real-world environmental applications by generating molecular-level insights essential for designing safer, more sustainable nuclear waste management technologies.

Tell us about your work in material science, especially as it relates to nanoparticles, and how you have applied it through research to address waste and environmental problems.

My work in material science is centred on the design, synthesis, and characterisation of advanced nanomaterials for environmental remediation applications. I have explored carbon-based adsorbents for removing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from industrial wastewater, photocatalytic nanomaterials for degrading organic dye pollutants, and MXene-enhanced polymer nanocomposite membranes for next-generation wastewater treatment and desalination, published in Next Materials. I have also contributed research on nanoparticles for targeted removal of heavy metals, microplastics, and pharmaceutical compounds from aquatic environments, published in Discover Nano, representing a comprehensive approach to using material science for environmental sustainability.

In your work in environmental chemistry, how do you think green chemistry innovations can make cities safer and healthier, especially in Nigeria?

Green chemistry is the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate hazardous substances, guided by 12 core principles established by Paul Anastas and John Warner.

In Nigeria, green chemistry can address industrial wastewater pollution, unsafe water sources, and air pollution from gas flaring by providing affordable, locally sourced, biodegradable treatment materials. My research on Moringa oleifera seeds and eggshell waste as natural coagulants for laboratory wastewater treatment demonstrates precisely how agricultural by-products can be converted into effective, scalable water treatment solutions, making safe water accessible to millions of Nigerians who currently lack it.

One of your co-authored research publications offers the prospect of harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) for the discovery and development of natural product-based therapeutics. Could you tell us about the major findings of this AI-driven work and its significance to the health sector?

Our AI-driven framework demonstrated that computational screening and molecular docking approaches can rapidly prioritise the most promising candidates for experimental validation, significantly accelerating the drug discovery pipeline. This has major implications for addressing neglected tropical diseases that disproportionately affect African and developing-world populations, where affordable, locally derived medicines are critically important.

If you were to solve three pressing problems facing Nigeria with your chemistry expertise, what problems would they be, and how would you go about solving them?

Water pollution, climate change, and plastic pollution.

For water pollution, I would deploy affordable green chemistry-driven technologies using Moringa oleifera seeds, eggshells, and agricultural residues as natural coagulants, making safe water accessible to rural and underserved communities. For climate change, I would advance green nanotechnology-based CO₂ capture solutions deployable at Nigeria’s oil and gas facilities. For plastic pollution, I would promote the development and adoption of biodegradable, renewable polymer alternatives, building on my published research on sustainable polymers as replacements for petroleum-based plastics.

You served as the student president of the Royal Society of Chemistry and the secretary of the American Chemical Society of your undergraduate university chapter. Now that you are at Emory University, how do you serve and demonstrate leadership within the university and intellectual communities?

At Emory University, I am the secretary of the Pi Alpha Chemical Society (PACS), I foster collaboration and knowledge-sharing among chemistry graduate students, work to build an inclusive and supportive scientific community, and take part in organising events at the department. As a graduate teaching assistant, I mentor and guide undergraduate students through laboratory experiments, fostering critical thinking and scientific communication skills. I also serve as a 2026 Piedmont TATTO Fellow in Sustainability and Curriculum Development at Emory’s Office of Sustainability Initiatives, contributing to the development of sustainability-focused educational programmes.

Beyond Emory, I volunteered with PACS, NOBCChE, and AWIS at the Atlanta Science Festival.

For your teaching efforts, scholarly work, volunteer services, and leadership endeavours at Emory University and in the US generally, have you been accorded any recognition, honour, award, or grant?

I was selected as one of 30 emerging global scientific leaders to receive the 2026 CAS Future Leaders Award — a recognition that includes a fully funded trip to CAS headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, for a 2-week leadership programme, participation in the ACS Fall 2026 conference in Chicago, and a $1,000 stipend. I also received the Heart of Emory SOAR Award, the YCC Leadership Development Award from the American Chemical Society’s Younger Chemists Committee, the RSC Sustainable Laboratory Grant worth £8,670 — a competitive award representing more than 50,000 chemical scientists globally — and the 2026 Piedmont TATTO Fellowship worth $500 plus a field trip, directly influencing more than 10,000 members of the Emory community.

These honours carry a deep responsibility to continue advocating science, sustainability, and equity.

You studied chemistry at a Nigerian university and are now studying it at a US university. What two things can Nigerian universities and researchers involved in chemistry studies and research learn from the way it is done in the US?

First, invest in research infrastructure. At Emory, world-class facilities have accelerated my doctoral research on actinide bonding. Yet, even before Emory, I had authored over 70 publications, secured the RSC Sustainable Laboratory Grant, and accumulated over 712 citations, proving extraordinary output is achievable in Nigeria with the right drive and mentorship. Imagine what Nigerian scientists could achieve with matching institutional investment.

Second, integrate research into undergraduate education from day one. I published my first peer-reviewed article as an undergraduate and graduated with a publication record that made me competitive for a $40,000 annual assistantship at a top American university. If Nigerian universities embedded research into undergraduate curricula systematically, our scientists would arrive at graduate school as already-published contributors — just as I did.

How is your PhD programme going, and how are you coping with life at Emory University and in the State of Georgia?

My PhD programme at Emory University is going exceptionally well, and I am grateful for the opportunity to be here. The intellectual environment at Emory is stimulating and supportive, with world-class faculty, state-of-the-art facilities, and a diverse and collaborative community of researchers from across the globe.

Atlanta is a vibrant and diverse city with a rich history, and I have found a wonderful community of fellow scientists and advocates here.