Description of Current Projects
The three most significant projects of the VRiChEL lab are Vicher1, Vicher2, and our first safety related simulation. We have also produced a number of small proof-of-concept applications to explore the capabilities of virtual reality as applied to technical education. For more details beyond the following short descriptions, see the bibliographic references.
Vicher 1 is a virtual
simulation of a modern chemical plant, focusing on catalyst decay
and different methods of handling this problem on an industrial
scale. Students start out in the welcome
center, and then move on to explore more significant areas.
Rapid decay of catalyst is studied in the transport reactor room, where students can operate and explore a vertical straight through transport reactor and associated catalyst regenerator. Medium rates of catalyst decay are handled in a moving bed reactor, and slow decay is studied in the time-temperature room.
On a microscopic scale, students in Vicher 1 can observe diffusion surrounding a single catalyst pellet, and can then fly inside the pores of the catalyst to observe reactions occuring at the molecular level. Zooming in still further shows a single molecule reacting on the surface inside the catalyst pore.
Vicher 2 is another
interactive virtual chemical plant simulation, focusing on non-isothermal
effects in chemical kinetics and reactor design. Doors from the
welcome center lead to three
different engineering areas.
In the non-isothermal packed bed reactor room, students observe changing temperatures down the length of a reactor as the inlet temperature is adjusted. A three dimensional display of the kinetics involved helps students to understand the reactor's response to their adjustments.
The multiple steady states room illustrates a continuous sitrred-tank reactor that can have different equilibrium operating conditions fro identical control settings, depending on how these conditions were reached. The staged reactor area shows multiple reactors in series with interstage heating, used to overcome equilibrium limitations at lower temperatures.
Safety is another
virutal chemical plant, that differs from the Vicher simulations
in two important respects. On the one hand, it is a non-functional
world, in that there are no operational control panels, but on
the other hand it contains a much higher level of realistic detail,
since it is based upon photographic data taken at an actual chemical
production facility. There is an extensive help facility in both
the Vicher applications and Safety. In the latter case, the help
window includes photographic detail that would not otherwise be
possible in a virtual reality simulation, as shown here.
Virtual reality offers
the ability to explore spaces composed of pure information, with
no walls or tangible objects as such. VRiChEL applications that
explore the informational capabilites of virtual reality include
thermodynamic relationships, and azeotropic distillation residue curves.
Another powerful
feature of virtual reality is the ability to see how things fit
together in three dimensional space. VRiChEL applications for
applying this to chemical engineering include crystal
structures, and fluid flow velocity
profiles.
Quick Time VR: QTVR is a method developed by Apple computer corporation for displaying panoramic photographs with full pan and zoom control. The most recent versions of Vicher 1 and Vicher 2 will incorporate QTVR images of industrial facilities as part of their "help" documentation.
Virtual Reality Modeling Language: VRML is an emerging standard for interactive moving three-dimensional web pages. We have started to develop some VRML models, and hope to have them on our web site soon.
