Overview

Virtual technologies have become more promising for education during force-majeure situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In the field of chemical engineering education, virtual reality (VR) seems to be a promising technology that can cater to the parallel needs of both academia and industry. This webinar will discuss the opportunities and challenges for the incorporation of VR into chemical engineering education with an emphasis on the fundamental areas of technology, pedagogy and socio-economics.

This webinar will be of great interest to educators and trainers, with a main focus on the ones delivering courses in engineering related to chemical process design, process safety, process modelling and simulation. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual reality can be regarded as a powerful tool for remote learning in chemical engineering education.          

Speakers

Vinod Vijay Kumar, Grant-funded researcher, University of Helsinki

Vinod is a chemical engineer and obtained his doctorate in chemical engineering jointly from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India and Monash University, Australia. He was employed as a post-doctoral researcher at the Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands where he worked on the virtual reality project for chemical engineering education. He is presently employed as a grant-funded researcher at the University of Helsinki, Finland. His research interests include system dynamics modelling and simulation, energy planning, life cycle assessment, and chemical engineering education.            

Deborah Carberry, PhD Researcher, Technical University of Denmark

Deborah is a product manager and two-time founder who is currently studying for a PhD in education-related design at the chemical engineering department at the Technical University of Denmark. With a primary degree in Engineering and a Master’s degree in Interactive digital media, she is in her element working on developing digitally based tools and platforms for Engineering students. Deborah's research interests span emerging technologies, cognitive science and design.

The material presented in this webinar has not been peer-reviewed. Any opinions are the presenters' own and do not necessarily represent those of IChemE or the Education Special Interest Group. The information is given in good faith but without any liability on the part of IChemE.