http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1088 Tue, 14 Apr 2026 23:26:35 GMT 2026-04-14T23:26:35Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12227 Assessing the Potential of Local Beneficial Halophytes in Desalination Sanleri, Kwabena Azure Cape Coast, part of Ghana's coastal region, has a rich diversity of plant species with various potential uses. These plant species, called halophytes, possess qualities that enable them to grow and thrive in saline environments. This research aimed to identify and explore these plants' nutritional, ecological, and medicinal significance, examining their salt tolerance and desalination abilities. The halophytes were identified using an image recognition method, where images of the plants were keyed into Pl@ntNet Identify website (https://identify.plantnet.org/), an online software for plant identification. Five halophytes, namely, Ipomoea aquatica, Lactuca taraxacifolia, Paspalum vaginatum, Sesuvium portulacastrum and Talinum triangulare, were selected from the identified halophytes for a greenhouse experiment using a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) to assess their response to varying salt concentrations (0, 25 and 50 dS/m) and soil types (sea sand and arable soil). Results revealed significant growth and salt tolerance variations among the studied halophytes, with P. vaginatum and S. portulacastrum demonstrating remarkable phytoremediation capabilities. These plants exhibited the ability to mitigate soil salinity and reduce the accumulation of toxic ions in soils, highlighting their potential for addressing soil and water salinity issues in affected environments. Another greenhouse experiment was conducted to assess the desalination abilities of S. portulacastrum (the most promising halophyte from the initial experiment) to desalinate saline water in a hydroponic system on a vertical farming structure. The factors for this experiment were the salt concentrations (0, 25 and 50 dS/m) and planting distances (15, 20, 30 and 40 cm). Sesuvium portulacastrum exhibited limited desalination capacity in reducing the EC and TDS of the saline water. However, it contributed to a reduction in the pH of the saline water. Further research is necessary to discover this pH-reducing effect's underlying mechanisms and potential applications in water treatment processes. Overall, this study underscores the significance of harnessing the ethnobotanical resources in Ghana for sustainable development and environmental conservation. xv, 179p:, ill. Fri, 01 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12227 2024-11-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12184 Development of Gluten-Free Noodles Based on Cassavabambara Groundnut Composite Flour Bassey, Akwetey, Ebenezer Noodles are now a common food in the World, eaten by many from different cultural backgrounds and races. However, noodles made from wheat are often seen as less healthy. As people become more health-conscious, researchers are experimenting with different ingredients to make noodles that are healthier, gluten-free, and meet changing food preferences. The study was centered on the development of gluten-free noodles from Casava-Bambara groundnut composite flour and the determination of the functional, textural, colour, sensory and nutritional composition of the resulting noodles. A simplex centroid mixture design in Minitab software was used for the formulations with the two mixture variables: Cassava flour [X1 (% w/w)] and Bambara groundnut flour [X2 (% w/w)] equaling 100 %. The ash, protein and fibre contents significantly increased (from 0.84 % to 1.52 %, 4.16 % to 7.27 % and 3.01 % to 4.48 % respectively) whereas the moisture and carbohydrate contents decreased (from 8.35 % to 7.35 and 87.23 % to 82.84 % respectively) as the percentage of Bambara Groundnut Flour increased. In addition, zinc, calcium, magnesium, iron, and potassium for Bambara Groundnut Flour incorporated noodles increased. Cooking losses were also minimal for formulations containing Bambara groundnut flour compared to the noodles prepared from 100 % Cassava Flour. Noodles with 30 % Bambara Groundnut Flour was the most preferred after the sensory evaluation. The results are relevant for utilizing Bambara groundnut as an ingredient in gluten-free noodle production as its addition improved the functional properties, nutritional composition and sensory attributes. xii, 85p:, ill. Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12184 2024-08-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12175 Assessment of the Physicochemical and Microbial Quality of Groundnut Pastes from Major Markets in the Central Region of Ghana and Prediction of Groundnut Paste Adulteration Using Portable Handheld Nir Spectroscopy with a Mobile Phone Welbeck, Joel Groundnut paste safety and quality is of great concern to consumers due to potential contamination and adulteration which poses serious health risk. This study investigated the safety and quality of groundnut paste using wet chemistry standard method as well as develop a novel application of hand-held NIR spectrometry coupled with chemometrics for the examination of groundnut paste authenticity and quality in real time. Samples were collected within the major markets in the Central region (Mankessim, Kotokuraba, Twifo Praso, Swedru and Kasoa). The authenticity of groundnut paste was evaluated through a physicochemical analysis and fungi count were also determined. A handheld near-infrared spectrometer was used to predict the presence of cassava flour and roasted maize flour at different percentage purity. Among the pre-processing methods used to ensure the quality and accurately of the final analysis, standard normal variant (SNV) was found to be superior. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to extract relevant information from the spectral data set and the results showed that groundnut paste samples of different categories could be clustered. The performance of the Support Vector Machine (SVM) model shows strong predictive capabilities, with R² values of 0.9751 for cassava flour and 0.9753 for roasted maize flour in the training phase, indicating that it explains a substantial portion of the variance in the data. Most of the groundnut paste samples examined showed low contamination of fungi ranging from 1.60 – 2.48 log10CFU/g. The current study showed that NIR spectroscopy can classify and determine groundnut paste adulterated with cassava flour and roasted maize flour. xiv, 132p:, ill. Sat, 01 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12175 2025-02-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12144 Agronomic Zinc Biofortification of Maize (Zea Mays) and Carrot (Daucus Carota) for Improved Food and Nutrition Security Prah, Godfred Okyere Micronutrient inadequacies, especially those linked to zinc, pose a significant worldwide public health issue, particularly in low-income nations such as Ghana. Improving the zinc content of primary grains and vegetables that form dietary staples through agricultural biofortification provides an economical solution to combat this problem. The study explored the impact of zinc concentration, timing, and fertilisation method on the yield and uptake efficiency of maize and carrots. The study used a 3-Factoral experiment in a Randomized Complete Block Design with fertilisation rate, stage/time, and method being the experimental factors. The current research in maize demonstrated that zinc concentration had a positive impact on physiological parameters, particularly Fv/Fm ratio, with an increase of over 11 % at a dosage of 6 kg/ha compared to the control. However, the timing and method of applying zinc fertiliser did not directly affect the physiology and growth of maize. Despite the evident link between zinc levels and yield parameters, applying it at 8 kg/ha led to a decreased cob weight, grain weight, and overall maize yield. It is noteworthy that a substantial increase of 52 % in cob weight and 28 % in yield was observed with 6 kg/ha zinc fertilisation relative to the control group. The timing of fertilisation had negligible impacts on most measured physiological and yield parameters in maize; however, there was a notable 15 % increase in cob weight when applied before flowering compared to during grain-filling. Additionally, application of zinc at 8 kg/ha had minimal impact on both physiology and yield traits. Nevertheless, a 26 % increase in grain zinc concentration was observed under 8 kg/ha fertilisation relative to the control. The findings revealed that, foliar zinc fertilisation increased grain zinc concentration of grains by 15.8 % compared to soil application. Also, zinc fertilisation at grain filling improved gain zinc concentration by 16 % compared to pre-anthesis. In carrots, method of application had an insignificant effect on yield and growth. However, there was a progressive increase in yield corresponding to higher zinc fertilisation rates. Typically, a double-fold increase in yield was recorded under 6 kg/ha concentration. Also, a 58 % and 14 % increase in root length and yield were recorded at 30 DAS compared to 50 and 70 DAS. Similarly, root zinc concentration exhibited a positive response with increasing zinc concentration with 30.6 mg/kg and 31.6 μg/g root and shoot zinc concentration recorded at 6 kg/ha level. Application at 30 DAS had a pronounced increase in shoot and root zinc concentration compared to 50 and 70 DAS application time. Hence, it is clear, that zinc agrobiofortification could play a significant role in addressing micronutrient inadequacy however, this is contingent on rate of application and time of application. Although application at 8 kg/ha could be lethal or show diminishing marginal returns regarding growth and yield, however, this significantly increased the concentration of zinc in maize. These findings have profound implications for nutritional security and the fight against hidden hunger, particularly in regions where staple crops are the primary sources of essential micronutrients. xiv, 182p:, ill. Sat, 01 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/12144 2024-06-01T00:00:00Z