Esters

This month, our Year 11 Separates Chemistry students have been exploring the world of organic chemistry, which in my view is one of the most interesting but also challenging parts of the GCSE course. As part of this unit, students have gained hands-on experience of synthesising esters! Known for their pleasant fragrances and wide range of applications, esters are a vital part of both the natural world and the chemical industry.

What Are Esters?

Esters are organic compounds formed from the reaction of an alcohol and a carboxylic acid. They play essential roles in the food industry, perfumery and even in the production of plastics. Their fruity scents and flavours make them a popular topic for students learning about organic chemistry.

The Experiment

Under the guidance of our dedicated chemistry teachers, students engaged in a safe and supervised lab session where they combined various alcohols with ethanoic acid to produce a range of different esters. The process involved heating the mixture and adding a few drops of sulfuric acid as a catalyst.

In theory, the different esters should produce a range of fruity smells (pears when using propanol, apples for butanol and bananas for pentanol). Well done to Maisie and Eva’s group for making the best smelling of all the esters we produced, pentyl ethanoate (structure below). The scent was mainly banana, with a touch of nail polish remover!

Whilst this isn’t a required practical for chemistry GCSE, it teaches some essential lab techniques such as safely heating flammable liquids and safely using concentrated acids, as well as understanding why reaction conditions are important to maximise yield of product. Learning about this reaction also allows the students to understand how polyesters are formed.

After completing our Organic Chemistry unit, we will be moving on to Chemical Analysis, which includes a range of practical tests to identify a variety of ions and compounds and involves lots more practical chemistry. 

Mr Coogan

Science Teacher

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  • Artsmark Platinum Award - Awards by Arts Council England
  • Lancashire Socio-economic Equality Badge
  • SMART
  • UNICEF
  • School Mental Health Award
  • Ofsted - Outstanding Provider
  • International School Award