A team of three Lower Sixth Chemistry students - Danika Dowling, Victoria Gramm and Lindsay Tate – has recorded a fourth place finish, out of 24 competitors, in the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) Schools' Analyst Competition.
The regional final took place at the School of Biology, Chemistry and Health Science at Manchester Metropolitan University.
Students spent the morning in the laboratories, carrying out 3 analysis tasks set in a forensic science scenario: "Had Herbert been poisoned by his new wife?" The contestants had to carry out some unfamiliar titrations and prepare samples to be run on the university's analysis machines. Pupils then needed to calculate and interpret their results.
In the afternoon, 3 speakers gave presentations, whilst the results were being calculated. Dr Richard Ladd of AstraZeneca talked about “Turning Molecules into Medicines”; Dr Steve Black of the Analytical Services at Sellafield and Andrew Scott from the RSC talked about ChemNet, the junior section of the RSC, in which Sixth Formers were encouraged to enrol.
Mrs Appleyard, Head of Chemistry, commented: “the girls worked really hard, the secret of their success was great teamwork and they achieved a very commendable 4th position out of 24 teams.”