Introducing SimCenter in Industrial Chemistry: An Innovative Pedagogical Approach to Improve Chemical Formulation Skills in Undergraduates

Abstract

Chemical formulation skills—the ability to select raw materials, calculate proportions, sequence processes, conduct quality control, and troubleshoot deviations—are central to industrial chemistry practice, yet undergraduate laboratory instruction is often constrained by limited reagents, equipment, and safe repetition opportunities, restricting students' chances to practice formulation decisions before working with real materials. This study evaluated SimCenter, an interactive virtual simulation platform allowing students to manipulate raw material ratios, run simulated quality control tests, and receive immediate feedback, as a complement to conventional laboratory instruction in an undergraduate industrial chemistry formulation course. A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design was used with 100 second- and third-year industrial chemistry students from two intact class sections at a Nigerian university. The experimental group (n = 50) received SimCenter-supported instruction alongside standard laboratory sessions across a 12-week formulation unit, while the control group (n = 50) received the same laboratory sessions with conventional lecture-based instruction only. Chemical formulation skills were assessed using a practical performance instrument covering five domains: raw material selection, proportioning and dosage calculation, process sequencing, quality control testing, and troubleshooting. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), controlling for pretest scores, showed a statistically significant difference in posttest composite scores favoring the experimental group, F(1, 97) = 91.24, p < .001, partial η² = .49, a large effect, with gains most pronounced in troubleshooting and quality control testing. These findings suggest that simulation-based instruction, when used to complement rather than replace hands-on laboratory practice, can meaningfully strengthen undergraduate chemical formulation competence.