Queen Elizabeth’s School extended its proud record in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Top of the Bench competition with victory in the regional final.
One team, pictured top, took first place – and thus qualified for the national finals in the spring – with a score of 40 out of 43. Another QE team was only one point behind, beating Harrow and Watford Grammar School for Boys into joint third place.
QE has frequently achieved success in the competition throughout its 20-year history.
Head of Chemistry Amy Irvine said: “It was a splendid performance by our winning team, who beat more than 50 other teams to take first place – and in the UK’s national Chemistry Week, too! Furthermore, all five of our teams came in the top ten, so we demonstrated real strength in depth.”
Congratulating all the QE entrants, Myles Worsley, an RSC Chilterns and Middlesex Section committee member, commented on the “excellent” scores of the winners and runners-up. “They showed an impressive knowledge and understanding of Chemistry,” he said.
Top of the Bench is open to every secondary school in the UK. Teams must comprise: two students from Year 9; one from Year 10, and one from Year 11.
This year’s regional finals, conducted over Zoom, featured six rounds. The early stages of these tested entrants’ general Chemistry knowledge, covering topics such as atoms and compounds.
Other rounds included:
- Examining practical knowledge: competitors had to identify different compounds from the results of different analytical tests;
- Asking different questions to each year group. (The Year 11 question, which was about equilibria, was particularly tricky, Dr Irvine said.);
- Testing knowledge of the atmosphere and gases, with, for example, entrants having to identify carbon monoxide as a ‘silent killer’;
The final round involved further testing of general Chemistry knowledge. Competitors had to identify the main compound in smelling salts.
“This caused me much amusement, as some of the boys were discussing what the difference was between baths salts and smelling salts!” Dr Irvine said.
The winning team, Team 35, comprised: Aaditya Pimple and Varenya Pangaluri, of Year 9; Arhaan Yadav, of Year 10; and Yash Mehta, of Year 11.
They win Amazon vouchers, as well as the honour of representing the School in the national finals, to be held at a university: this year’s venue has yet to be named.
The QE teams’ scores and positions were:
Team 35: 40/43 – first
Team 36: 37.5/43 – fourth
Team 37: 39/43 – second
Team 38: 31/43 – ninth
Team 39: 33.5/43 – seventh