100+ High School Science Fair Projects: Award-Winning Science Fair Project Topics for High Schoolers
High school science fairs offer students the opportunity to explore their interests in the sciences, engage in research, and develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. With so many potential areas of focus and scientific questions to explore, it can be difficult to know where to begin. That's why we've put together a comprehensive list of over 100 high school science fair projects to inspire and guide students on their scientific journeys.
From biology to chemistry, physics to earth sciences, this list includes a wide range of topics and project ideas suitable for high school students of all levels. So whether you're just starting to brainstorm ideas or you're ready to dive into a project, we hope this list will provide you with the inspiration and guidance you need to create a successful and engaging science fair project.
You may also be interested in this blog post on High School Science Fair Projects.
High School Science Fair Project Ideas, Organized by Subject
Life Science
Compare the effect of antibiotics on gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. (Grow your own cultures with agar & Petri dishes. For a sample procedure and more project ideas, see our bacteria science project guide.)
Run a bioassay to test for toxicity in water or soil.
Test the effect of ultraviolet radiation on bacteria growth.
Do different types of bread grow different types of mold? Does temperature or light affect mold growth?
Experiment with plant genetics (plant hybrids, cross-breeding).
Test factors like smoke or pollution that might affect transpiration rates for plants.
Investigate the effects of increased oxygen or carbon dioxide concentration on plant germination.
Find out the differences in properties and effects of organic vs. chemical fertilizers.
Earth Science
Explore methods of erosion prevention, and test the effects of different soil compositions on erosion (e.g. how does more clay compare to more sand?).
Experiment with methods of flood management and containment.
Investigate the effects of sunspots on weather patterns.
Work with methods for forecasting weather.
Test the concentration and effect of minerals and pH in soil and water samples. (Use water test strips and a soil analyzer.)
Determine the chemical makeup of rain in your area; test possible hazardous effects.
Physical Science
Study acoustic models and methods of noise control. (A sound measurement kit/ might be helpful.)
Experiment with the effect of storage temperatures on batteries.
Develop improvements in battery chargers; try using solar cells to recharge batteries.
Compare the bending strength and durability of different building materials.
Build a potato-powered battery.
Experiment with building materials that are fire-preventative.
Design industrial uses of magnets; test the effects of magnetic and electromagnetic fields on living organisms such as brine shrimp.
Design a project in advanced robotic programming.
Build a sensor-moving advanced bristle bot robot.
Chemistry
Test the effects of a solution's pH level on iron and copper corrosion; explore different corrosion prevention methods.
Experiment with types, effectiveness, and impact on the nutritional value of preservatives in food.
Compare the properties and effects of artificial sweeteners vs. sugar or other natural sweeteners. (For this and the following tests, you might consider the Chemistry of Food kit.)
Test the chemical properties and physiological impact of saturated, unsaturated, and trans fats.
Use indophenol to test the effect of different cooking methods on the depletion of vitamin C in food.
Investigate the role of enzymes and yeast in the fermentation or cheese-making process.
Experiment with different methods of water filtration/purification (such as solar distillation).
Analyze the by-products of gasoline; compare the efficiency of various octane levels.
Conduct an orange juice titration demonstration
Environmental Science
Compare or develop hydrogen production and storage methods for use in fuel cells.
Investigate methods of improving home insulation.
Experiment with expanded uses of solar energy.
Test methods for cleaning up and neutralizing the effect of oil in salt water with this oil spill cleanup kit.
Work with methods of processing/recycling non-biodegradable items; experiment with decomposition aids.
Experiment with the design and function of wind turbines or water wheels.
Test for harmful effects of pesticides; test or develop natural/organic alternatives; test the effectiveness of common pesticides such as DEET.
Which type and color of roofing material provides the most energy efficiency?
Previous Award-Winning High School Science Fair Projects, Organized by Grade
For an even more comprehensive high school science fair projects, check out the examples below of award-winning topics in each grade level.
9th Grade
Noninvasive Blood Glucose Concentration Monitoring via Interferometry and Thermal Technology
Making the road safer with Computer Vision Algorithms
Using Carbon-Coated Sea Shells for the Filtration of Lead-Contaminated Water
Increasing Blast and Impact Resistance of Reinforced Concrete Buildings
Mimicking fruit fly response patterns for threat evasion of airborne machines
Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Cellulose and Production of Cellulosic Ethanol
Improving hearing loss with tactile sound
The effect of current and filtration on hydrogen production in seawater electrolysis
Determination of Bisphenol A (BPA) in Consumer Products in the Ottawa Region
Are dandelions able to inhibit bacterial growth and have other health benefits?
The Chances of Guessing Correctly on a Multiple-Choice Exam
A molecular, chemical, and genetic assessment on the diversity of 16 faba bean lines.
Stem Cells: usage, advantages, and controversy
CANDU (Canada Deuterium Uranium) nuclear power generator
Canadian petroleum industry and its impact on the environment
Multiple vs. the torque of a horizontal axis windmill.
Multiple rotors vs. electrical energy output of a horizontal axis windmill.
Geothermal energy efficiency and negative effects on the environment.
Effects of the temperature of a PEM fuel cell and electrolyzer system
Construct a device for detecting black ice for blind people.
Will a structure with a crossbeam support more mass than the structure without it?
Development of an Embedded 3D Robot Visual System
Object Recognition using a scanner, web camera, etc., and a VB6 computer program
The use different types of digital media as the cover mediums for Steganographic purposes
Patient's medical information encoded into ultrasound, CT and MRI images
Which is more stronger: plexiglass or glass?
Test the effectiveness of antibacterial substances on E. coli.
Test water for pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrate, phosphates, coliform bacteria, iron and hardness
The Human Genome Project (HGP): key factors and scientists involved
Which medium results in effective mould growth? Synthetic, semi-synthetic or natural?
10th Grade
Averrhoa Bilimbi - A Natural Coagulant For Rubber Latex
A convolutional neural network based approach to plant disease diagnosis
Enhance fishermen safety and productivity by use of GPS
Combatting drought with orange peels
Creating a simple diagnostic tool for earlier detection of cardiac disease
Combating the global food crisis: Diazotroph Bacteria as a Cereal Crop Growth Promoter
A flashlight that runs solely on the heat of the human hand
Catch, identify and count insects in a greenhouses in order to determine a control strategy.
An Automated Cereal Dispenser for Disabled People
Polar Bear Protection: Population, Predictions, Predicaments
Investigate why the common household mold causes asthma
What is a prime number?
Mycorrhizal inoculated soybean plants as a means of phytoremediation
Generate electricity from car shock absorbers.
Fighting Ascochyta Blight of Chickpea
Biofixation of CO2 Using Coccolithophorid Algae
Determine if San Carlos has enough wind speed to support wind powered generators.
How much wind velocity do we need to generate power (light a LED)?
Ethanol Based Jatropha Biodiesel
Evaluate a fuel mixture of Ethanol and Hydrogen Peroxide
Ethanol produced by fermenting waste materials.
Describe alternative energy sources and outline advantages and disadvantages of any source.
Improving Binocular Vision in Stereopsis Impairment Using Optical Devices
Investigate the science of aviation and flight
Experiment with Biefield-Brown Lifters
Explore the technology behind different power sources
Research the basics of cloning: history, science and scientists
The Best Detergent for Plentiful DNA Extraction
Explore the effect of the lunar phase on events on Earth - temperature and birth rates.
11th Grade
How to Harvest Tree Vibrations Energy
Will educating about organ donation have impact on intent for organ donation?
A natural anti-bacterial solution using rainwater and persimmon calyx
Analysis of Rocket Guidance Systems to Enhance Space Flight Maneuverability
Biodegrading Naphthenic Acids using Sand Bioreactors in Bitumen Extraction from Oil Sands
Computer-aided Discovery of Novel Influenza Endonuclease Inhibitors to Combat Flu Pandemic
Novel Antibiotics in mango ginger (Curcuma amada)
Sand filters and the biodegradation of toxic naphthenic acids in tailings ponds
Creating a facility for farming on the planet Mars
Free Energy: The Science of Perpetual Motion Machines
Global Neural Network Cloud Service for Breast Cancer Diagnosis
Controlling Food Intake Speed with Electronic Circuitry
Neem tree extracts as antibacterial, antifungal and pesticidal agents
Establish a natural substance for teeth whitening
Should antioxidants like vitamin E, be administered along with edelfosine to cancer patients?
The use of a webcam visual system for trajectory estimation
Zinc Phytoremediation with the Indian Mustard
Increase wind velocity by creating a hole in an airfoil
An innovative passive high-precision photovoltaic panel tracking system
The invasive nature of smooth brome and creeping thistle
Study of tropospheric ozone using OSIRIS and TOMS data.
Compare the gaming performance of six different graphic cards
A Dynamic Analog Concurrently-Processed Adaptive Neural Network Chip
Show that soybean chemiluminescence levels can be altered by an oxidizing agent
Test if adding ash to paint will enhance its fire-extinguishing characteristics
Is the Monarch butterfly put at risk from the pollen of Bt corn (GMO)
The development of a plant-based vaccine against SARS-CoV
Test the Effect of Grapefruit Juice on Anti-Cholesterol Drugs
Circadian rhythms in Russian giant sunflowers
The effects of plant regulators (auxins and cytokinins) on different tomato genotypes
12th Grade
Early Detection of Pancreatic Cancer through Competitive Lateral-flow Assays and Deep Learning.
Optimizing environmental DNA detection methods while analyzing the presence of river otters
Cheap production of nitrogen pesticides and fertilizers through hydrolysis of plant protein
Simple chemiresistor-based alkane sensor to detect lung cancer from the exhaled breath
Morphological Identification of Wide-Separation Gravitationally Lensed Quasars
Portable elemental analysis system for heavy metal contamination detection in soil samples
Determine the mechanism by which cancer cells resist cisplatin
Investigate ways to prolong the operational lifespan of dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)
Biogas production from jatropha seed cake and cow dung
Study the basic theory of combinatorial games using the game of Nim as an example
Moon Helium-3 Energy That Could Be Beamed Back to the Earth
Remediation of persistent hydrocarbon compounds
Extracting Energy From Phase Shift in Water
Build a walking robot
An efficient method for performing real-time object tracking
A robot that can tell where objects are (map-building)
The use of a potentiometer led for a conceptual human-robotic interface.
Distributed Robotics: An Intelligent System
Finding a practical mathematical function for f(x) with genetic algorithms.
A deterministic computer simulator for PRT (Personal Rapid Transit) networks
A computer program that simulates Newtonian physics
How does extracellular pH affect the genetic transformation of calcium treated E. coli
The effect of soil salt stress on plant health, plant ethylene and ABA production.
About Inspirit AI
AI Scholars Live Online is a 10 session (25-hour) program that exposes high school students to fundamental AI concepts and guides them to build a socially impactful project. Taught by our team of graduate students from Stanford, MIT, and more, students receive a personalized learning experience in small groups with a student-teacher ratio of 5:1.
