Benson Nsikak

Contents

  1. College
  2. School
  3. Department
  4. Research Interests
  5. Awards & Honours
  6. Teaching Areas
  7. Selected Publications (42)
  8. Collaboration/Linkages
  9. Conferences Attended
  10. Summary of Profile
  11. Curriculum Vitae

Professor Nsikak Benson

B.Sc. (Chemistry); M.Sc. (Applied Chemistry); Ph.D (Environmental Chemistry), MACS, MRSC, MNES

College

College of Science and Technology

School

Departments

Department

Chemistry

Research Interests

  1. Marine biogeochemistry and climate change.
  2. Air-sea fluxes of CO2, Methane, Dimethyl sulphide (DMS) and Oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs) in seawater.
  3. Trace metals and nutrient fluxes in estuarine systems.
  4. Organic contaminants in marine environment.
  5. Ocean acidification

Awards & Honours

1. February 2011 - Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission-UNESCO Travel Grant to Plymouth Marine Laboratory, UK.

2. 2011 - Alfred-Wegener Institute, the Helmholtz Centre Geesthacht and the Baltic Sea Research Institute Joint Travel Grant to attend 9th Summer School on Coastal Research in Lauenburg and Büsum, Germany.

3. 2010 - UNDP Travel Grant to attend UNFCCC, Cancun, Mexico.

4. November 2010 - IOC-UNESCO Travel Grant to attend Workshop Series for Adaptation to Climate Change in Africa, Nairobi, Kenya.

5. 2010 - UNESCO-IOC Young African Science Fellowship, UNESCO, Paris.

6. 2010 - High Impact Journal Award, Covenant University, Nigeria.

7. November 2010 - Appeared in 10th International SOLAS newsletter

8. 2009 - Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) Travel Grant to attend 4th SOLAS International Summer School, Corsica, France.

9. 2009 – Platform Best Improvement Award, SOLAS Summer School, France.

10. 2008 – 2009 - Junior Fulbright Fellowship, Department of Atmospheric, Space and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin, U.S.A.

11. 2009 - Certificate of Achievement, Institute of International Education, New York.

12. 2007 - START-NSF African Young Scientist Award, U.S.A.

13. 2003 - Akwa Ibom State Graduate Research Scholarship.

Teaching Areas

1. Environmental Chemistry

2. Marine Chemistry

3. Analytical Chemistry

4. Environmetrics

Selected Publications (42)

1. New ecological risk indices for evaluating heavy metals contamination in aquatic sediment: A case study of the Gulf of Guinea

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2. Disinfection Byproducts in Drinking Water and Evaluation of Potential Health Risks of Long-Term Exposure in Nigeria

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3. Geochemical fractionation and ecological risks assessment of benthic sediment-bound heavy metals from coastal ecosystems off the Equatorial Atlantic Ocean

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4. Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) Occurrence and Toxicity in Camellia sinensis and Herbal Tea

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5. Characterisation of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Coastal Inland Seawater, Nigeria

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6. Chemical Speciation and Health Risk Assessment of Fine Particulate Bound Trace Metals Emitted from Ota Industrial Estate, Nigeria

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7. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in imported Sardinops sagax: Levels and health risk assessments through dietary exposure in Nigeria

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8. Adsorptive desulphurization of model oil by Ag nanoparticles-modified activated carbon prepared from brewer’s spent grains.

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9. Characterisation of Airborne Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Its Air Quality Implications in Ogun State, Nigeria

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10. Distribution of organochlorine pesticide residues in epipelic and benthic sediments from Lagos Lagoon, Nigeria.

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11. Aflatoxin contamination of some edible grains from Lagos and Ota markets, Nigeria

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12. Climate Change and the Oceanic Carbon Cycle

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13. Distribution and risk assessment of trace metals in Leptodius exarata, surface water and sediments from Douglas Creek in the Qua Iboe Estuary

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14. Trace Metal Contamination Characteristics and Health Risks Assessment of Commelina africana L. and Psammitic Sandflats in the Niger Delta, Nigeria

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15. Study of Surface Morphology, Elemental Composition and Sources of Airborne Fine Particulate Matter in Agbara Industrial Estate, Nigeria

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16. Source Evaluation and Trace Metal Contamination in Benthic Sediments from Equatorial Ecosystems Using Multivariate Statistical Techniques

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17. Modeling Spatial and Temporal pCO2 Variability at 49°N/16.5°W and 56.5°N/52.6°W in the North Atlantic Ocean

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18. Total dissolved inorganic carbon and physicochemical characteristics of surface microlayer and upper mixed layer water from Lagos Lagoon, Nigeria.

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19. Predictive analysis of degradation indices and microbial growth during enhanced biodegradation of municipal solid wastes in Uyo, Nigeria.

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20. Observed trends of pCO2 and air-sea CO2 fluxes in the North Atlantic Ocean.

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21. Surface Mixed Layer Profile of Physical and Biogeochemical Variables in the Subpolar North-West and -East Atlantic Ocean: A Data-Model Comparison Study

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22. On the influence of interseasonal sea surface temperature on surface water pCO2 at 49.0°N / 16.5°W and 56.5oN / 52.6oW in the North Atlantic Ocean

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23. Occurrence and distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in surface microlayer and subsurface seawater of Lagos Lagoon, Nigeria

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24. Cadmium, copper, lead and zinc contents in Ethmalosa fimbriata-Bonga shad and Tilapia guineensis-Tilapia caught from Imo River (Nigeria).

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25. Hydrobiological constraints of trace metals in surface water, coastal sediment and water lily of Calabar River, Nigeria

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26. Water pollution

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27. Climate Change, Effects

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28. Carbon cycle

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29. Global Warming

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30. Mercury accumulation in fishes from tropical aquatic ecosystems in the Niger Delta, Nigeria

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31. Phytoextraction potential of Sporobulus pyramidalis found in an abandoned battery industry environment in Nigeria

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32. Microalgae biodiversity and biomass status in Qua Iboe Estuary mangrove swamp, Nigeria

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33. Interseasonal distribution and partitioning of heavy metals in subtidal sediment of Qua Iboe Estuary and associated Creeks, Niger Delta (Nigeria)

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34. Seasonal dynamics of physicochemical properties and heavy metal burdens in Mangrove sediments and surface water of the brackish Qua Iboe Estuary, Nigeria.

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35. Petroleum hydrocarbons and limiting nutrients in Macura reptantia, Procambarus clarkii and benthic sediment from Qua Iboe Estuary, Nigeria

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36. Application of correlation analysis in assessment of relationships between mineral hydrocarbon levels and hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria count in tropical Mangrove estuarine sediments.

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37. Metal contamination of surface water, sediment and Tympanotonus fuscatus var. radula of Iko River and environmental impact due to Utapete gas flare station, Nigeria

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38. Petroleum hydrocarbons contamination of sediments and accumulation in Tympanotonus fuscatus var radula from the Qua Iboe Mangrove Ecosystem, Nigeria.

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39. Interseasonal hydrological characteristics and variabilities in surface water of tropical estuarine ecosystems within Niger Delta, Nigeria

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40. Assessment of contamination by organochlorine pesticides in Solanum lycopersicum L. and Capsicum annuum L.: A market survey in Nigeria.

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41. Trace Metals Levels in Inorganic Fertilizers Commercially Available in Nigeria.

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42. Analytical Relevance of Trace Metal Speciation in Environmental and Biophysicochemical Systems

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Collaboration/Linkages

1. SOLAS International Project Office, Marine Biogeochemie, IFM-GEOMAR, Kiel, Germany.
2. Cycling in the Sunlit Ocean Research Group, Plymouth Marine Laboratory, UK.
3. McKinley Biogeochemistry Research Group, University of Wisconsin, USA.
4. Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC)-UNESCO, France.
5. Institute of Coastal Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht Centre for Materials and Coastal Research.
6. Fulbright Alumni Association, USA.

Conferences Attended

1. Nsikak U. Benson and Francis E. Asuquo., 2014. [Oral Presentation]. On the influence of sea surface temperature on pCO2 in the North Atlantic Ocean. 7th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, June 9-13, 2014, Houston, Texas, USA.

2. Nsikak U. Benson, Arne Körtzinger and Francis E. Asuquo., 2014. [Oral Presentation]. Modelling spatial and temporal pCO2 variability in the North Atlantic Ocean. 7th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, June 9-13, 2014, Houston, Texas, USA.

3. Nsikak Benson; Galen McKinley; Oladele Osibanjo; Francis Asuquo., 2011. [Poster Presentation]. Modeling basin-scale pCO2 temporal and spatial variability in the North Atlantic Ocean. World Climate Research Programme Open Science Conference, 24-28 October 2011, Denver, CO, USA. Poster Session C44: The Changing Role of the Ocean and Land in the Global Carbon Balance (Conveners: C. Sabine, T. Tanhua, V. Romanovsky, J. Canadell).

4. Nsikak U. Benson., 2011. [Oral Presentation]. 9th Joint Summer School on Coastal Research: Climate Change and Impact in the North Sea, Lauenburg and Busum, North Germany. 19th – 30th September, 2011.

5. Nsikak U. Benson., 2011. [Oral Presentation]. Nigeria: Climate Change and our future. Cycling in the Sunlit Ocean, Plymouth Marine Laboratory, UK. 6th March, 2011.

6. Nsikak U. Benson., 2010. [Poster Presentation]. Real-time ocean-atmosphere CO2 fluxes. First Analysis, Integration and Modeling of the Earth System (AIMES) Open Science Conference, 10-13 May 2010, Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC), Edinburgh, UK.

7. Nsikak U. Benson., 2010. [Oral Presentation]. Nigeria's National Priorities for Implementing Adaptation to Climate. UNESCO/IOC Workshop Series for Adaptation to Climate Change in Africa, Nairobi, Kenya, 3-5 November 2010.

8. Nsikak U. Benson., 2010. Modeling pCO2 variability and air–sea CO2 fluxes in the North Atlantic. SOLAS Newsletter, Issue 10, p.26. Available at: http://www.solas-int.org/news/newsletter/files/issue10.pdf

9. Benson, N. U., McKinley, G. A., Bennington, V. and Polzin, D., 2009. Seasonal pCO2 cycle and air-sea CO2 fluxes in the North Atlantic basins: Processes, modeling and variability of regional ocean carbon exchange. [Poster Presentation]. 4th SOLAS International Summer School, 3rd – 15th August 2009. Cargese, Corsica, France.

10. Benson, N. U., McKinley, G. A., Bennington, V. and Polzin, D., 2009. [Oral Presentation]. Modeling seasonal spatiotemporal variability of oceanic pCO2 cycle in the Northeast Atlantic region. 4th SOLAS International Summer School, 3rd – 15th August 2009. Cargese, France.

11. G. A. McKinley, D. Ullman, V. Bennington, N. Benson, A. Fay, S. Dutkiewicz., 2008. The Changing North Atlantic Carbon Sink: 1992-2006, AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, 12/2008.

12. Nsikak U. Benson and Joseph P. Essien., 2008. [Oral Presentation]. Petroleum hydrocarbons burden in Qua Iboe estuarine epipellic and benthic sediments. 1st International Workshop on “Aquatic Toxicology and Biomonitoring”, August 27th to 29th, 2008, Vodňany, Czech Republic.

13. Nsikak U. Benson. 2007. [Oral Presentation]. E-waste: Sources, environmental concerns and waste management practices in Nigeria. First International Conference on Environmental Research, Technology and Policy (ERTEP) July 16-19, 2007, Accra, Ghana. A1.7, p. 16

14. Nsikak U. Benson, Joseph P. Essien and Sylvester P. Antai. 2007. [Oral Presentation]. Seasonal dynamics of physicochemical properties and heavy metal burdens in Mangrove sediments and surface waters of the brackish Qua Iboe Estuary, Nigeria. First International Conference on Environmental Research, Technology and Policy (ERTEP) July 16-19, 2007, Accra, Ghana. F3.9, p. 16

15. A. B. Williams and Nsikak U. Benson. 2007. [Abstract]. Seasonal Temporal Variation of Physicochemical Parameters in Pelagic Column of Tropical Estuarine Ecosystems within Niger Delta, Nigeria. First International Conference on Environmental Research, Technology and Policy (ERTEP), La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, Accra, Ghana. July 16-19, 2007. E2.20, p. 50.

16. Nsikak U. Benson, Joseph P. Essien and Sylvester P. Antai. 2007. [Oral Presentation]. Assessment of coastal estuarine contamination by total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) and heavy metal in mangrove sediments and Tympanotonus fuscatus from the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. First International Conference on Environmental Research, Technology and Policy (ERTEP) July 16-19, 2007, Accra, Ghana. C2.18, p.39

17. Benson, N.U., Essien, J.P. and Antia, S.P. 2006. [Oral Presentation].Total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) and heavy metal levels in Mangrove sediments and TPH accumulation by Tympanotonus fuscatus from the brackish Qua Iboe Estuary, Nigeria. Proceedings of the Egyptian 1st International Conference for Chemistry held in Sharm El-Sheikh (South of Sinai, Egypt), September 11-14, 2006.

Summary of Profile

Nsikak Benson holds a Ph.D. degree in Marine Environmental Chemistry. His research interest is primarily on investigating the exchange of marine trace gases between the atmosphere and the ocean. He is interested in developing a quantitative understanding of the cycling of carbon, nutrients and other elements in ocean systems as well as interactions with ocean biology and anthropogenic impacts. He was awarded the Junior Fulbright Fellowship by the US Department of State to conduct a research on large-scale interannual CO2 air-sea interaction and climate change in the North Atlantic Ocean at the Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences, University of Wisconsin, USA between 2008 and 2009. Dr. Benson is an alumnus of SOLAS Summer School, Institut d'Études Scientifiques de Cargèse, Corsica, France. He was also selected as a UNESCO Fellow and African Young Scientist Awardee under the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) Science Fellowship Programme offered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), US State Department, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). Dr. Benson is a Member, Ministerial Steering Committee on Climate Change and Adaptation Fund, and had the privilege of serving as a Member of the Nigerian delegation to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held at Cancun, Mexico in 2010. He attended the 9th Summer School on Coastal Research in Lauenburg and Büsum, Germany jointly organized by the Alfred-Wegener Institute, the Helmholtz Centre Geesthacht, and the Baltic Sea Research Institute. In 2011, Benson received an IOC-UNESCO sponsored visiting research fellowship to Plymouth Marine Laboratory, UK, where he was exposed to a wide range of analytical techniques employed for marine trace gas analysis under the supervision of Dr. Frances Hopkins. He is a recipient of several research awards and travel grants. Nsikak Benson is the Leader of the Environmental Chemistry Research Group, Covenant University. He has published in reputable refereed national and international journals. Although teaching and research constitute his primary career pursuit, he leads a life of varied interests with community service, reading, writing, hunting and fishing serving as rewarding hobbies. He is married and has a daughter.

Curriculum Vitae

nsikakbenson.pdf 150.35 kB
 
 
Last Updated:

04/20/2018 12:05 am