Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi has been awarded a Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship to lead research on how air pollution affects cloud formation and rainfall in West Africa. The project is co-hosted by Dr. Patrick Boakye, a senior lecturer at the Department of Chemical Engineering, and Dr. Prince Junior Asilevi, a lecturer at the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science.
It will be carried out in partnership with Prof. Patrick Mensah from the Southern University and A&M College, USA.
During his visit from May 6 to June 6, 2025, Prof. Mensah will work with KNUST faculty and students to investigate how aerosols influence cloud condensation nuclei and precipitation using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling tools.
This effort will support the design of validation experiments for the proposed Planetary Cloud-Aerosol Research Facility (PCARF).
The research will integrate satellite data with CFD simulations to quantify aerosol impacts on cloud microphysics and atmospheric thermodynamics. The project also includes a technical workshop, graduate mentorship, and joint publications.
Selected as one of 43 projects under the 2025 Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship Program, the initiative strengthens KNUST’s capacity in environmental modeling and contributes to Africa-focused climate science.
The program is funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York and administered by the Institute of International Education in partnership with the Association of African Universities.
