Research machine loan is a great result for FVC

Research machine loan is a great result for FVC
Appliance of science

A special piece of scientific research kit has been benefiting Forth Valley College students during a welcome loan period.

The portable Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) machine, which helps determine the structure of chemical molecules, belongs to ScotCHEM - a strategic collaboration of Scotland’s university chemistry departments – and found a home in FVC’s Science labs for a three week period.

This allowed dozens of science and oil and gas industry students, across the Departments of Electrical, Instrumentation and Chemical Engineering and Applied Science, Maths and Mechanical Engineering, to make use of it to analyse their working projects and determine the structure of compounds.

Lecturers Dr Frances Ross and Dr James Roebuck are pictured here with two students from the HND Chemical Process Technology course - Jennifer Menday (25) from Stirling and Muhammad Gardee (20) from Glasgow, during a workshop with the machine - which is worth more than £25,000.

Dr Ross, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for our students to use a piece of equipment that they would not be able to access unless they were at university.”

Dr Mhairi Hay, Curriculum Manager in the Department of Electrical, Instrumentation and Chemical Engineering, said: “We can’t thank ScotCHEM enough for the loan of this equipment and we have tried to give as many students across our science based course the chance to use it. The hope is that we can gain access to it on an annual basis and then encourage engagement with some of our local school pupils as well.”

 

 

NMR