Open Day

Discover what it is like to investigate the dangers of a clandestine laboratory (illicit drugs laboratory)with WA Police, Department of Fire and Emergency Services and ChemCentre. Collect samples from the mock scene, wear the important protective clothing and finally make sure you are decontaminated before leaving the scene.

ChemCentre Chemists and PathWest Forensic Pathologists will be on hand to explain the science behind investigating ‘death’. What different fluids or organs are sampled during a post-mortem and why? How sensitive are our instruments at detecting drugs? How long after death can drugs be detected? Do you know the location of the organs in the body? Why are new drugs a challenge for us? How does automation help us work smarter and faster?

Want to know more? Come and ask us a question!

When you arrive make sure you book a forensic science or environmental chemistry laboratory tour!

You’ll be guided past the laboratories with your own ChemCentre expert highlighting a number of exciting cases, interesting instruments and at the ready to answer any of your questions.

Tours will run every 20 minutes. Capacity is limited.

See how you fair at simple tasks while ‘under the influence’ wearing our alcohol and drug goggles.

Curious what happens to a road-side drug sample once collected by WA Police? Board the WA Police ‘booze bus', quiz the chemists and learn more about the process.

Children (and those who are young at heart) will love this exciting and exhilarating show where a ChemCentre Chemist will guide the audience through four exciting, explosive experiments.

Shows run for 15 minutes, located on the main stage, at 10:15 am, 12:15 pm, 1:15 pm, 2:15 pm and 3:15 pm.

Our environmental chemists are ready to analyse your garden soils. Just bring 4-5 tablespoons of soil in a ziplock bag or small container to the Soil Testing stall on the day, where our experts will analyse it for FREE!

Learn more about the salinity and pH of your soil, and how this will impact your garden. Chat to an environmental chemist on the day and take home some handy tips for your garden

Make your own take home bath salts and learn more about the chemistry of odours and volatile compounds with the ChemCentre Chemists!

Everyone has an important role when dealing with critical chemical incidents… Learn how collaboration is critical when you meet Department of Fire and Emergency Services First Responders who manage the State’s chemical incidents with the assistance of ChemCentre Chemists.

Explore ChemCentre’s Hazardous Material Emergency Response team’s ‘laboratory on wheels’, which includes a range of scientific equipment and portable devices used to detect and identify unknown chemicals in an emergency incident!

Curious where a career in chemistry can take you? Learn about the diverse career paths available within chemistry and how to kick start your careers by chatting to academics from South Metropolitan TAFE, Edith Cowan University, Murdoch University, Curtin University and the University of Western Australia, as well as practising chemists from the Royal Australian Chemical Institute and ChemCentre.

Learn more about their stalls in the partner information below.

Where is the future taking us?! Quiz the chemists who lead a range of our research and innovation projects including ChemCentre’s Proteomics and Honey Research programs. These projects have had, and will continue to have, an impact on our community and economy into the future.  

Learn more at ChemCentre Open Day.

There is something for everyone at ChemCentre Open Day including our Little heroes’  tent for younger children. Come and play with the oobleck, get your face painted with the Science Superheroes and join in the colouring in station

1. Snap a photo at the photobooth, or the Science Superhero photo board or any of the activities throughout the day.
2. Share to Twitter or Instagram using #ChemCentreOpenDay 
3. Collect your free photo printout at Mission Control on level 2.

Sample the delicious delights and learn more about the intriguing science behind our favourite treats.

Will you accept your mission?

Collect your mission brief  at Mission Control (on level 2), explore the world of chemistry and earn your take home science kit.

Your kit includes four activity guidelines, a beaker, a test tube, a pipette and more!

Ideal for children and parents to complete together. Hurry, stock is limited.

ChemCentre works closely with a number of WA Police teams including the Forensic Division, Organised Crime Squad, Bomb Response Unit and Traffic Enforcement Group (Booze Bus). Meet the officers, explore the Booze Bus, try on the tactical equipment and learn how chemistry can help fight crime.

ChemCentre and the Department of Fire and Emergency Services work closely together during chemical incidents across Western Australia. Learn more about this close collaboration and how incidents are managed at ChemCentre Open Day

ChemCentre and PathWest work together on a number of projects including coronial investigations. During coronial investigations for the Office of the State Coroner, forensic pathologists at PathWest undertake autopsies (post-mortems).  Small samples taken during these autopsies are sent to the Forensic Toxicology Section of ChemCentre for the analysis of drugs, alcohol and poisons, to assist pathologists and Coroners in determining cause of death. Learn more at ChemCentre Open Day.

Have you ever wondered which baby nappy has the best absorbing abilities? Or what is the concentration of brilliant blue dye in various mouthwashes? Or how good you are at washing your hands? Come to visit the Edith Cowan University stand at ChemCentre Open Day, where Nardia Bordas and Magdalena Wajrak will demonstrate these, and other chemistry activities and you get to play with polymorph and visualise chemical concepts using VR glasses.Have you ever wondered which baby nappy has the best absorbing abilities? Or what is the concentration of brilliant blue dye in various mouthwashes? Or how good you are at washing your hands? Come to visit the Edith Cowan University stand at ChemCentre Open Day, where Nardia Bordas and Magdalena Wajrak will demonstrate these, and other chemistry activities and you get to play with polymorph and visualise chemical concepts using VR glasses.

Chat to the academics from Chemistry@Curtin to discuss the exciting chemistry of latent (hidden) fingerprints and try your hand at using chemistry to make them glow.  While you're there, meet the Curtin Outreach team and try the intriguing 'Chemistry in a Bag' or 'DIY Lava Lamps'.

Join the Murdoch University Outreach team as we explore forensic science and chemistry in action! Collect your own fingerprints for reference and determine the type of patterns present.  You’ll also have the chance to dust and lift your own fingerprint, and compare prints recovered from a crime scene to suspect records. How unique are your shoes? Have a go at matching shoeprint impressions recovered from a crime scene to footwear from different persons of interest. Learn about the amazing world of superconductors and how chemists make very powerful electromagnets for use in Maglev trains, particle accelerators and in medical imaging machines.

Come visit the UWA School of Molecular Sciences team, academics and students at the ChemCentre Open Day. Experience how Augmented reality can bring the DNA molecule to life, explore the structure and function of DNA using your mobile devices. Learn about spherification while making fruit caviar! Learn about the wonderful world of ferrofluids; gold nanoparticles and quantum dots, smart metals and more…!  

Chat to the Chemists from the RACI who work in a range of chemistry fields, learn more about the highly valuable periodic table and the chemistry behind glow sticks!

ChemCentre and Racing and Wagering Western Australia work closely to ensure a fair and safe racing community. Greyhounds as Pets WA (GAP) is a program of Racing and Wagering Western Australia (RWWA). RWWA is committed to ensuring that the best levels of care are given to greyhounds throughout all stages of their lives, through a program of investment, education, monitoring and regulation. When a greyhound retires from the racing industry, at any age, RWWA will aim to achieve every healthy and behaviourally sound greyhound being rehomed.

Meet the dogs and learn more about Greyhounds as Pets at ChemCentre Open Day.

More details coming soon!