Scarlett Pawson, 9, and Scarlett O'Neil, 8, were among 51 finalists named across four categories (research and innovation, leadership, science engagement and school science) in the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes on Tuesday.

The Year 3 students told the Mercury they combined their passions in their video entry which describes the process of chilling a liquid below its freezing point.

"Scarlett and I always like doing things together like dancing, singing and doing science experiments so we thought it'd be a great opportunity to ... have a lot of fun," Scarlett Pawson said.

Read more: 10 cool places to take Illawarra kids in the school holidays

Scarlett O'Neil added the phenomenon of "super cooling" looked cool and they "wanted to try and make water freeze in an instant ourselves."

"I love the magic of since and getting to prove theories on different topics," she said.

Mum Tanya Pawson said competitions likes this were a great opportunity for kids to "express their creativity and learn new stuff".

Read more: The mighty Bunnings sausage sizzle returns

"[It's] not just about science but also about how to make a movie, how to write a script and film and edit," she said. "It was such a great experience for the girls."

The duo are up against primary students from Victoria and Tasmania, who have made videos on why bugs can walk on water and why some liquids don't evaporate when passing boiling point.

Finalists across all categories include pandemic preparation research, a single-dose cure for malaria, citizen scientists studying brush-turkey behaviour in suburbia, research on the origins of modern humans, technology which creates a virtual 3D-model of a cancer cell and two projects looking at the impact of feral cats on native fauna and biodiversity.

Winners will be announced on November 24.

We depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support.