58th Chemistry Olympiad at RPTU
Pupils visit RPTU as part of the 58th International Chemistry Olympiad.
From 22 to 25 February 2026, 15 pupils from Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland had the opportunity to gain an insight into everyday life in a chemistry laboratory and study and research at RPTU in the Chemistry department. Some of the participants are already in the third selection round of the Chemistry Olympiad and were looking forward to putting their acquired knowledge to practical use. Experimentally, the focus was on gaining an insight into as many working techniques from organic chemistry and analytics as possible in the context of the everyday example of acetylsalicylic acid.
After arriving at the community center in Trippstadt on Sunday, the participants were able to get a first impression of RPTU in Kaiserslautern, the degree programs in the Department of Chemistry and the upcoming laboratory days during a round of introductions and a short input presentation. After the obligatory safety briefing, the students went straight into the lab on Monday, where they were able to put their skills to the test in an organic synthesis. Starting with the independent construction of the complex apparatus, through the first synthesis step to the purification of the resulting raw product, they were able to learn a variety of basic practices in teams of two. The complexity of the synthesis was close to experiments that students also carry out in their first basic practicals in the Bachelor of Chemistry. The day was supervised by the Chemistry Didactics team led by Professor Dr. Gabriele Hornung. In the afternoon, the participants were given a laboratory tour by Dr. Rainer Scheuermann (Prof. Dr. Richling's working group) to gain an in-depth insight into the content of food chemistry studies and, above all, practice-oriented, experimental methods of food chemistry. On the second day, the students focused on analyzing the synthesis product acetylsalicylic acid. The focus here was on quantitative determination using photometry as well as qualitative analysis using melting point determination and spectroscopic methods such as IR and NMR. The participants were supported by the team from the chemistry didactics department and Dr. Uwe Bergsträßer (organic chemistry, Prof. Dr. Jens Hartung's working group).
The Professor:Innen-Talk, which gives students the opportunity to talk to some of the professors, has now become an established event covering a wide range of subjects. This year, Professor Dr. Jennifer Meyer (Physical Chemistry), Professor Dr. Barbara Witt (Food Chemistry), Dr. Tina Kostka (Toxicology), Professor Dr. Georg Manolikakes (Organic Chemistry) and Professor Dr. Antonio Pierik (Biochemistry) answered numerous questions from the young people. Starting with research, through the career of a professor to the question of how to successfully study chemistry or how to decide on a university. The participants learned how our professors found their way into chemistry and why they still enjoy experimenting in the lab when time permits.
The state seminar for the Chemistry Olympiad has been organized and held for many years at RPTU by the Department of Chemistry Didactics with support from the specialist sciences. It is an integral part of the events in the chemistry department and is very popular. Participants are regularly enthusiastic about the atmosphere and the program. This is also made clear by the fact that participants often attend the event in consecutive years. The competition is financially supported by the German Chemical Industry Association.