Co Londonderry teenager Kaycee Deery scoops UK Young Scientist of the Year award with environmentally-friendly sunscreen

A 15-year old student at St Mary’s College, Londonderry, has been crowned UK Young Scientist of the Year 2023 for her creation of environmentally friendly sunscreen, designed to avoid harmful chemicals found in commercial suncreams which damage the environment.

Kaycee Deery was inspired to create sunscreens based on natural ingredients after seeing articles detailing potentially harmful chemicals in commercial sunscreens entering UK water systems. Chemicals present in sunscreen, such as titanium dioxide and zinc oxide are washed away after swimming in the sea, pools and showering. These chemicals can harm and kill vital marine life and coral. Kaycee set out to find a solution to this problem by creating natural sunscreens with UVA protection, derived from naturally occurring oils.

After selecting a range of oils, including vitamin A and E oils, Kaycee tested their ability to absorb and protect against UVA radiation. Designing a homemade lightbox containing UVA light, she tested each oil for its ability to provide SPF protection. Following her experiments, she was able to create several natural sunscreens ranging from SPF9 to SPF34 protection. She plans to further her experiments by testing for UVB protection help avoid damage to skin such as burning and increased skin cancer risk.

Accepting her award, Kaycee said: “This is surreal. I don’t feel like I’ve done it, but I did! I decided to do this project to create a more sustainable, biodegradable and eco-friendly sunscreen. This award will help me continue and advance the project and hopefully, some day have an actual product to give people”.

Dr Hilary Leevers, chief Executive of EngineeringUK, which runs The Big Bang UK Young Scientists & Engineers Competition, said: “Kaycee has worked incredibly hard on her sunscreen project, innovating her own lightbox and experimenting to extract natural oils from plants and vegetables. The judges were really impressed with her creative ideas, problem solving and determination – all important elements in science.”

Northern Ireland was well represented among the winners at The Big Bang Competition, with Nikita Morrison and Becca Connolly also from St Mary’s College winning the Intermediate Science category award. Ashton Mui, Callum Bailie and Niall Manson from Ballymena Academy took home the Siemens SMART Technologies Environmental Award 2023.

To find out more about The Big Bang Competition and the 2023 winners visit: www.thebigbang.org.uk/the-big-bang-competition/2023-winners