Researchers from North Carolina State University and the University at Buffalo have developed a technology called “Artificial Chemist,” which incorporates artificial intelligence (AI) and Robotics to perform chemical reactions to accelerate Research & Development (R&D) and manufacturing of commercially desirable materials.
Artificial Chemist is a truly autonomous system that can intelligently navigate through the chemical universe,” says Milad Abolhasani, corresponding author of a paper on the work and an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at North Carolina State University.
The Artificial Chemist has both the capability to physically perform experiments and also sense the experimental results. Then it uses its intelligence for recording that data and using it to determine what the next experiment will be.
Dr. Abolhasani says that even without prior knowledge, the system takes about one-and-a-half hours to identify the material but once it acquires the knowledge, Artificial Chemist could identify the optimal material for new properties in 10 to 15 minutes.
Dr. Abolhasani predicts “I believe autonomous materials R&D enabled by Artificial Chemist can re-shape the future of materials development and manufacturing,” Abolhasani says. “I’m now looking for partners to help us transfer the technique from the lab to the industrial sector.”
There research was published in Advanced Materials, 2020; 2001626.
Sources:
Original Article: Artificial Chemist: An Autonomous Quantum Dot Synthesis Bot Advanced Materials, 2020; 2001626 Authors: Robert W. Epps, Michael S. Bowen, Amanda A. Volk, Kameel Abdel-Latif, Suyong Han, Aram Amassian and Milad Abolhasani, North Carolina State University; and Kristofer G. Reyes, University at Buffalo