(612c) Browser-Based Simulations for the Illustration of Chemical Engineering Concepts

Interactive online components have been found to be effective in science and engineering education.  Such components may allow students to work at their own pace and in their own time, and allow for interactive projects without the consumption of lab resources.  In general, these gains have been shown in the literature to come at no educational cost or even with improved student learning when compared to traditional approaches.   However, for chemical engineers, such tools are relatively rare and often require proprietary software or software installation, which limits their reach and impact.

We have developed the tools to build interactive and visually dynamic simulations to illustrate important chemical engineering concepts and processes using JavaScript.  Use of JavaScript presents some distinct difficulties, due to its limited native library of mathematical operations and limited means of visualization.  We have, however, assembled a toolbox of JavaScript functions to overcome those restrictions.   The result is a set of simulations that require only a browser to operate, and, unlike Java or Flash-based simulations, these simulations will function on the majority of smart phones and all major operating systems with no need to install additional software, proprietary or otherwise.

Many simulations have been created and, due to their usefulness and accessibility as pedagogical tools for our students, others are in development.   For example, a CSTR simulation has been created to demonstrate concepts of reaction kinetics, mass and energy balances, and control.  A 2-D heat conduction simulation has been used to demonstrate concepts of heat transfer and numerical methods.  We have also created browser-based simulations of existing lab equipment and used these simulations in conjunction with hands-on work to better illustrate the interplay between theory and practice. 

These web tools allow our students (or any student with internet access) to quickly develop an intuition for complicated engineering concepts by literally interacting with them from the device in the palm of their hands.  Furthermore, as compared to the traditional use of static example problems which we may find in texts, the interactivity and visual feedback emphasized in these simulations have improved our ability to quickly cover multiple scenarios with a single system and educate a more diverse set of learners.