Her love for swimming in a sparkling blue pool inspired her ingenious research for a science project.
It also landed Jessica Visser, a Grade 10 learner at Protea Heights Academy (PHA) in Brackenfell, a special award for the best young female scientist at the Eskom regional science fair.
She was also selected as the best senior in engineering and recently learned that she has been selected to participate in the International Science Fair in October in Gauteng.
A total of 302 learners in Grades 4 to 12 from the region gathered to present their research projects at Paul Roos Gymnasium on 10 and 11 August. The evaluation of the 223 projects on display was carried out by 70 judges, comprising educators, specialists and scholars.
Visser’s winning project is an automated pool chlorinator with a feedback control system, which helps domestic pool owners maintain their pool so that when they leave their pool unattended for a while, it will remain clean and prevent algae and bacteria growing in the pool.
“I designed and built a sensor to test the chlorine content of the pool and integrated that with a chlorine dispenser that is activated when the chlorine content drops too low. Keeping a pool’s water clean needs constant attention and even an overnight rain shower can lead to chlorine levels dropping and the pool turning green,” she explained to TygerBurger last week.
“I love swimming in the summer but not in a green pool. I often help my dad to test the pool’s water content using a test kit and adding chlorine when needed. I was looking for a project for this year’s expo and then thought about developing a sensor that could test the chlorine content of the pool automatically. I started to research how this could be done and then realised that there is nothing available locally that pool owners can use to automatically adjust the amount of chlorine in the pool based on demand,” she says.
“I took some ideas from hydroponics dosing systems and tried out various ways in which chlorine could be added to the pool water automatically, only when needed, and to prevent the chlorine dropping too low, or being too high.”
‘Something new’
Visser has entered science expos every year since Grade 8 and enjoys the challenge of creating, testing and experimenting.
“In the past two years I did research projects where I had to develop systems to test hypotheses. This year, I decided to try creating something new. I have done robotics courses at school and enjoy playing with electronic sensors and including them in circuits.”
She has always been curious about how things work.
“My parents encouraged me to try new things and to work hard to achieve what I set out to do. My mom is a marine scientist and pushes me very hard to do my best. I also believe that anyone can do whatever they want as long as they put their mind to it and persevere. Even though it takes a lot of hard work to do well in the expo, the recognition of a good project is very rewarding.”
With a keen interest in design, Visser has not yet decided what to do after school but is considering studying architecture, design engineering or graphic design at university.
She says she is thrilled with the recognition she received for her dedication, which has thus far earned her two silver medals and a gold medal from the regional expos.
Dedication
Talking about the country’s energy crisis, Visser says she believes that Eskom has to find a way to use new green technology rather than only relying on coal powered systems – of which a lot of the technology is outdated and keeps failing.
“In South Africa we have so much sun for solar energy and we have wind and powerful ocean currents that can turn turbines to create electricity. In future Eskom and the government should focus on building more renewable energy generation capacity and should also encourage people to produce their own energy. This will also help South Africa to reduce its carbon emissions,” says Visser.
PHA school principal Andrea Coetzer has expressed her pride of Visser’s achievement.
“Jessica is clearly able to identify a problem and to work systematically on finding a working solution. Not only does her dedication allow her to reach her goals, she also encourages others to reach for greater heights,” she says.
“As a maths and sciences school, we encourage our learners to think out of the box and to be innovative.”
Fifteen learners from Protea Heights Academy entered with nine projects among them, of whom one received highly commended, one a bronze and two silver medals.
Eskom Expo’s Stellenbosch Regional Science Fair director, Toinette Horn, said the vision of the expo is not only to inspire young scientists but also to stimulate their interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (Stem) education by giving them an opportunity to think beyond the day-to-day learning in the classroom.
“It is a great place to learn about the many different areas of science. Your time at the regional expo can fill you with new ideas, insights and inspiration that will stay with you and help you long after the event is over,” Horn added.
