POLOKWANE – The learners bagged second position after they had to come up with inventions that would help solve problems related to water and sanitation.
Using their initiative they launched a device they called the Aquatic Bio Electrical System which landed them first position at district level.
The learners first came up with an idea on how to purify water and produce electricity at the same time. At district level, they developed a water bottle project with materials such as coal, nylon, sand and tissues which they say was able to purify the water which came from the Seshego dam.
To prove the water was purified by the water filtration project that the learners developed, the water was taken for testing at the Municipal Water Purification Laboratory and the water was proven to be clean and purified and suitable for drinking.
The learners said that while conducting research regarding water and electricity, they found out ocean water could also be used to produce electricity as it has the minerals needed to produce electricity.
At provincial level the learners developed and entered a dual purification and sanitation system (DPSS) which was able to purify the water as well as kill the smell in the water taken from the Seshego dam. The water was also tested to see if it was indeed clean and the foul smell was completely eliminated from the water.
Taxila Secondary School life science teacher, Matome Mabitsela, said the science competition helps learners to actively develop original scientific ideas by using the same scientific formulas, methods and research skills they are taught in the classrooms.
“When the department of water and sanitation visited our school I felt encouraged and motivated to enter the competition as I knew the learners would definitely learn a great deal from such a competition.
“We entered and won the competition in 2014 and went to Sweden, a country that cares very much about water and sanitation,” explained Mabitsela.
The learners said they learned a lot about water and sanitation and they will compete again next year, this time aiming for position one at the South African Youth Water competition in the invention/awareness category.
