Ozoemena Kenneth Ikechukwu

Prof. Kenneth Ikechukwu Ozoemena was obtained BSc (Hons) in industrial chemistry from Abia State University (Nigeria), two MSc degrees in Chemistry, and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, from the University of Lagos, Nigeria, and a PhD degree in Physical-Inorganic Chemistry at Rhodes University, South Africa. Presently, he is Research Professor at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) where he where he heads the prestigious South African DSI-NRF SARChI Chair in Materials Electrochemistry and Materials Technologies (MEET). Prior to joining Wits in 2017, he had worked at Rhodes University as Andrew W Mellon Foundation Lecturer in Chemistry (2004 – 2006), University of Pretoria as a Senior Lecturer in Chemistry (2006 – 2009), Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) as Chief Research Scientist and Research Group Leader of the Electrochemical Energy Technologies (2009 - 2017), and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Technology Finance Corporation (SOC) Ltd (Technifin) - a state-owned corporation and subsidiary company of the CSIR. His key research interests are in advanced batteries, fuel cells and electrochemical sensors. As of August 2023, he has published over 240 articles in peer review journals, 11 book chapters, three edited books, and registered 11 patents (including 2 granted US patents). Some of his most recent accomplishments include ‘A’- rating by the South Africa’s National Research Foundation (NRF), the Wits’ Vice Chancellor’s Research Award, and CSIR CEO Award. He is a member of the national Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), Fellow of the African Academy of Science (FAAS), Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), and a Fellow of the Association of Commonwealth Universities at Coventry University, UK (2021). He serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of several journals including Chemical Communications (RSC publishing), Energy Advances (RSC publishing), Current Opinion in Electrochemistry (Elsevier) and Scientific Reports (Springer-Nature). He is the co-Editor-in-Chief of the Electrochemistry Communications (Elsevier) and the Topical Editor for Electrocatalysis (Springer-Nature). Prof. Ozoemena is a Visiting/Honorary Professor at the Wuhan University of Technology, China.