Midlands State University is a public university established in 2000. Geographically located in the center of Zimbabwe, Midlands attracts students from across the country. With growing enrollment and interest in chemical technology, the Department of Chemical Technology has expanded its research profile since its founding. It is a research-driven department with a goal of using chemical technology to drive socio-economic development.

Climate change caused by excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is a problem not just for Zimbabwe, but for the entire world. Carbon dioxide levels are higher now than they have been at any time during the last 800,000 years.

Still, Gift Mehlana, PhD, FLAIR fellow in the Department of Chemical Technology at Midlands State University, says that “we must also understand that a carbon-free environment is not possible in the near future.”

That’s why, he explains, his team is researching ways to mitigate the damage by recycling carbon dioxide to create other useful chemicals that don’t harm the environment.

“If we manage to capture carbon dioxide from the point of emissions, we will be able to tackle climate change and global warming,” he says.

Although Dr. Mehlana’s work focuses on manufacturing chemicals, his team is developing clean technologies to advance their work. The small molecules they use contain ingredients that react with greenhouse gases to transform them into chemicals that the industry can use to build everyday products.

One such chemical is formic acid, which is a building block for a number of goods like livestock feed and perfume. Using a specialized surface developed in their lab, Dr. Mehlana and his team capture carbon dioxide and cause a chemical reaction to produce the acid.

“To date, we have prepared a number of novel materials that we have applied in the capturing and conversion of carbon dioxide to formic acid,” he says.

But Dr. Mehlana is hampered by the lack of equipment to analyze samples. Currently, the lab’s samples are sent outside of Zimbabwe, where they can be analyzed and then sent back. With equipment from Seeding Labs, analysis will no longer be an obstacle to developing technology for recycling carbon dioxide.

For Dr. Mehlana, eliminating this barrier will allow his lab to get to work solving environmental issues.

“Chemists should be at the forefront in carrying out research that is meant to address the global environmental problems that we are facing,” he says.