CEB hosts Sutton Trust Summer School 2024

The Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (CEB) has welcomed students from the Sutton Trust UK Summer Schools programme, to participate in a sweet four-day challenge.

For the third year running, students were set a design and manufacturing task, to create their own original design of chocolate bar and attempt to create five identical versions.

For a week in August, the students were taught the basics of computer-aided design (CAD), process design and control, the mechanics of a non-Newtonian fluid, and sustainability in processes. This knowledge proved essential to the student's task.

The students used a CAD program to design the 3D printable shapes that would form the basis for their moulds. Next, with the aid of our Makerspace technicians, the shapes were placed in a vacuum-forming machine that pressed a hot piece of pliable plastic against the shapes, creating the indent of their moulds.

The students also spent time in the Teaching Lab, getting the opportunity to go hands-on with a scaled-down version of the technology used in major chocolate factories. They experimented with an electronically controlled nozzle to precisely deliver the chocolate into their mould. Making careful note of the temperatures, pressures, and timings in the system, the students were then able to replicate their process precisely. This allowed them to process five identical versions of their chocolate bar to complete the challenge.

With the skills and knowledge they acquired, the students gained an insight into how chemical engineering processes affect our everyday lives, and created their own sweet treat too.

A student works on designing his mould using CAD

CEB was pleased to welcome alum Aiden Goulden, Senior Process Engineer at Syngenta; as well as Timothy Williams, a Senior Engineer at Mondelez International, working at the Cadbury factory in Bournville. These two experts assisted CEB academic staff members Dr Kamran Yunus and Dr Zach Bond in delivering the course.

Students experiment with the setup in the CEB teaching lab

The Sutton Trust is a charity that champions social mobility and partners with universities nationwide to offer programmes supporting high-achieving students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Year 12 students selected for the Summer School are invited to stay at a Cambridge college for a week. They experience world-class teaching and engage with academics and current undergraduates in their subjects of interest. It is free to attend. 

Prospective students interested in applying for a funded place at next year's Sutton Trust Summer School in chemical engineering and biotechnology can find more information here.