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All about to know "Virtual Chemistry"



     Chemists have been building molecular models for centuries. It’s a crucial exercise in understanding the interactions that take place and are otherwise invisible. But there’s no denying drawing structures or fiddling with Molymod lacks the excitement and spectacle of a live experiment. Now, this traditionally dull activity could be about to get a new lease of life, thanks to advances in a technology more often associated with gaming: virtual reality (VR).
EIn David Glowacki’s lab at the university of Bristol, UK, molecules appear right in front of you in all their moving, three-dimensional glory. You can push, prod and even wrestle with them.
Glowacki has spent five years perfecting the Nano Simbox VR system, which gives those who don Occulus Rift-style headsets an experience of total immersion in the molecular world. Armed with ‘atomic tweezers’ one can attempt to tie a wriggling peptide chain into a knot, or manipulate a drug molecule so that it docks with the active site of a receptor.

 The Nano Simbox simulations are designed to encourage collaboration, as up to 10 people can use the system at once. ‘I’ve already started taking my tutorial groups in it,’ Glowacki says. ‘When I need to teach them stuff we do a 15-minute lesson in there. That’s made me pretty popular.’


The potential of VR extends far beyond impressing undergraduates. Glowacki has high hopes it will be useful as a research tool. His own group is using the Nano Simbox to simulate the scattering of reactive molecules on surfaces. And he is conducting trials of the technology with several UK-based pharma companies to explore its potential in that arena.

A virtual chemistry lab allows users to safely perform experiments in a virtual world. The Virtual Augmented Laboratory, or VAL, was developed by French company XXII. 3D-printed beakers and an interactive Bunsen burner are used to mix and heat chemicals. An instructor uses a smartphone to guide and monitor the users. VAL is still a prototype, but may soon make chemistry class much more exciting –– and less dangerous.

Comments

  1. nameplates29 March 2018 at 02:10

    Very nice informative about the virtual chemistry. Some of the chemical consultancy and market research consultancies research on chemistry and their trends.

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