Cynthia Kusin Okoro-Shekwaga, Collin Irumba, Isah Sani Saidu, Matthew Reilly, Elizabeth Kisaaka, Henry Amanya, Swaib Semiyaga, Robinah Kulabako, Vianney Tumwesige, Miller Alonso Camargo-Valero
The relatively slow advancement in biohydrogen research across Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries, like Uganda, puts them at risk of ‘Copy-Pasting’ technologies designed for more advanced economies. This study uses a Multi-Factorial Design of Experiment to compare biohydrogen production profiles from three organic waste types (banana peel, pineapple peel and mixed peels), at four inoculum-to-substrate ratios (2:1, 1:1, 0.5:1 and 0.25:1), across three sites (Kampala, Uganda, and Leeds and York, United Kingdom). The results showed that the maximum biohydrogen yield was significantly higher in Leeds (116.3 mLH2/gVS) and York (59.1 mLH2/gVS) than Kampala (15.7 mLH2/gVS). Moreover, the correlation analysis of key operating parameters showed vast inconsistencies in the performance profiles across the three sites, suggesting that data from one region cannot be used to inform technology uptake in a different region. A conscious approach to biohydrogen research and development is needed to enable technology adaptation to local resources across SSA. © 2026 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. This is an open access article under the CC BY license. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
BioResource Systems Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering, Design, Art and Technology, Makerere University, P.O. Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda; Centre of Excellence for Anaerobic Digestion, Department of Biology, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, United Kingdom; Green Heat Ltd, P.O. Box 10235, Kampala, Uganda; Department of Civil Engineering and Planning, Faculty of Engineering, University Negeri Malang, Malang, Indonesia
