Researchers from the UHI Millennium Institute and a number of local companies showcased their work and products at the Ramada Hotel, Inverness as part of National Science Week.

Elizabeth Barron, one of the event organisers and a lecturer at the centre for rural resource management at Inverness College UHI, said: "A wide range of scientific research is taking place across the Highlands and Islands in institutions such as the Scottish Association for Marine Science UHI at the Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory, Oban and the Environmental Research Institute at the North Highland College UHI, Thurso.

"Although there are events which bring researchers together, there are limited opportunities for the public to become involved.

"We believe this is contributing to the brain drain which takes many young people in the Highlands away from the area. This event allows researchers from across the network to demonstrate to the public, including school students, some of the groundbreaking work being undertaken in the region."

Emma Cochrane, a PhD research student at the Environmental Research Institute, part of North Highland College in Thurso, was showcasing a project which involves using natural products such as crab shell. She demonstrated how ground up crab shell can be used to extract impurities in contaminated water leaving the liquid clean. Emma said that the product had a lot of potential and could also possibly be used to clean distillery waste in the whisky making process. She said: "We've had school classes and members of the public popping in and they all seemed very interested. I think a lot of people don't realise that this type of research is going on in the Highlands so it's nice to be able to tell them about it."

The event continues today at the Ramada.

Short presentations on the renewable energy potential of the region including wave, wind and biomass took place at Inverness College last night.

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