Mixed Reality-based chemical reactor visualization

Abstract

A multi-tubular reactor for butadiene synthesis was developed, visualized using Microsoft HoloLens2, and built to allow immersive human interaction. Fluid analysis is particularly important in reactor design, including heat generation, temperature distribution, and mole fraction of reactants and products. Flow analysis is mostly executed with CFD tools like Open FOAM and ANSYS Fluent. Post processing software visualizes the CFD findings. However, the post-processing software is focused on the engineer, which lacks user-friendliness for the user who actually builds the reactor [Matthias Berger and Verina Cristie, 2015]. Contemporary technologies like virtual reality and mixed reality were applied to improve this. Virtual reality is a technique that creates a virtual world in a three-dimensional digital environment that blocks out the actual world. Furthermore, mixed reality technology interacts with virtual things made in the real world, minimizing heterogeneity and creating a smart environment where reality and virtuality are united by maximizing immersion. So, using Unity 3D, a gaming engine, a multi-tube reactor was created in virtual reality. Menus, selection windows, and buttons are also implemented in C# to facilitate interaction. This VR was then deployed to Microsoft HoloLens2 via Visual Studio. The HoloLens2 is an un tethered wearable holographic computer that offers bidirectional video, speech, and MR composite communication [Guy Martin et al., 2019]. An integrated mixed reality system was finally created that instantly reflected mutual conversation. This approach can also be employed in distillation towers, heat exchangers, separators, pumps and other process equipment performance monitoring. Smart manufacturing and a digital twin termed future plant can be accomplished by observing the actual process and implementing an autonomous data interaction system.