Anthony N. Gachanja
Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenya
Title: GC-MS-Application and Instrumentation Challenges in Eastern Africa
Biography
Biography: Anthony N. Gachanja
Abstract
The availability and usage of analytical instrumentation is steadily improving in research, private and institutional laboratories within the Eastern African region. It is critical for governments and institutions to make decisions on developmental areas (e.g. millennium development goals on health, food security, water and industrialization etc) using analytical data from validated methodologies using best available instrumentation. The current level of GC-MS instrumentation in public universities, government and private laboratories, with highlights on state-of-art equipment, will be discussed. Challenges in acquisition, installation and routine usage of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) instrumentation in Eastern Africa region will be presented. With the support of Pan-African chemistry Network and The Royal Society of Chemistry, training workshops have been held in the region for GC-MS users. Lessons learnt through these workshops will be discussed. The experiences and current application of GC-MS with examples such analysis of organic pollutants in water, profiling of honey from different origins, and organic contaminants in vegetables available in Kenyan market. Suggestions on the way forward for advancement of GC-MS and MS in the region will be presented.