The year 13 chemists enjoyed a fascinating day at the Royal Institution in London. As we soaked up the history of the building - where Michael Faraday discovered benzene and first liquefied chlorine, Humphry Davy invented his famous miners’ lamp, and the Dewar flask (now more commonly known as the Thermos) was created - we attended an engaging talk on dyes.

The students then made their own natural dyes using blueberries and pomegranates, and discovered how these reacted differently with natural and synthetic fabrics. Afterwards, they were treated to a spectacular demonstration of flame colours and the remarkable properties of magnesium.