Chemistry is one of my favourite subjects, but it is always a challenge for me to link what I learn in the classroom with my everyday life. For example, food and drink are part of my daily life, but how much do I really know about the chemistry and properties of items such as lemon juice and coke? The Royal Society of Chemistry organises a National Schools' Analytical Chemistry Competition to provide insight into how the theory and formulas learned in the classroom can be applied in real and everyday life. This year the practical part of the event was a set of experiments concerning the analysis of aspartame, acidity, and calcium. Aspartame is an artificial sweetener used in many different types of reduced calorie beverages. Acidity gives a sour taste and lemon juice which has a high acidity provides flavouring to sauces, dressings, and a wide variety of drinks. Minerals in water give it “hardness” and can provide not only trace nutrients (Fe, Ca, Mg) but also poisons (Pb, Cd, As).
More than 200 schools compete each year for a place in the National Schools' Analytical Chemistry Competition. On 4
th April, hosted by Nottingham Trent University, 11 schools from the Midlands took part in the 2008 Heat. As a team, Ajit Pankhania, Kieron Kumar, and myself represented the School in the heat. We were the first team to venture into this competition, with Mr Heath, Head of the Chemistry Department providing us with the relevant readings and information.
Teams were required to undertake various practical analytical determinations based on problems relevant to industrial or social needs. These were judged for skill, understanding and accuracy and were intended to promote team work and safety in the laboratory. The competition provided some tasks which were relatively familiar to us, such as titrations, and others which were likely to be unfamiliar, such as chromatographic separations or atomic and molecular spectroscopy. To complete the tasks in the time allocated, we had to work as a unit, allocating separate tasks to individual team members. For example, Ajit, renowned for his precision and initiative, usually focussed on recording and explaining our findings, whereas Kieron always had the ability to solve problems on the spot, whereas I was able to carry out the analytical problems accurately.
Our School finished in a very creditable 2nd place, winning a cash prize for the Chemistry Department and book tokens and certificates for team members.
I felt that our day in the National Schools Analyst Competition not only provided me with a deep insight into more complex analytical techniques, but was also a highly enjoyable and beneficial day. I would like to express my thanks towards Ajit and Kieron for taking part in the team along side me, and also to Mr Heath for his organisation and for providing us with this opportunity.
Haadi Shalabi
Member of the team, represented the School in the
‘National Schools Analyst Competition’
