Skip to main content
EduArc includes tools for searching molecules and rendering chemical structures. Add professional molecular diagrams to your courses, study guides, and assignments.
Chemistry tools search PubChem, one of the world’s largest free chemistry databases with millions of compounds.

What You Can Do

Search Molecules

Find molecules by name, formula, or SMILES

Render Structures

Generate 2D molecular diagrams as SVG

Add to Content

Embed diagrams in websites and PDFs

Searching for Molecules

The AI can search for molecules in three ways:
Search for caffeine.
Find the molecule aspirin.
Look up glucose.

What You’ll Get

When the AI finds a molecule, it returns:
  • CID - PubChem Compound ID (unique identifier)
  • Name - Common name of the molecule
  • Formula - Chemical formula (e.g., C8H10N4O2)
  • Molecular Weight - Mass in g/mol
  • SMILES - Structure notation (needed for rendering)

Rendering Structures

Once you’ve found a molecule (or if you already know its SMILES), the AI can render it as a 2D diagram.

Basic Rendering

Add the molecular structure of caffeine.
Render the benzene molecule.
Add a diagram of ethanol.
The AI will:
  1. Search for the molecule to get its SMILES
  2. Render a 2D diagram (default 300x300 pixels)
  3. Save it and embed it in your content

Custom Size

You can request specific dimensions between 100-1000 pixels:
Render aspirin at 400x400 pixels.
Add a large diagram of glucose (600x600).
Show caffeine structure at 200x200 for inline use.
Size recommendations:
  • 200x200 - Inline with text
  • 300x300 - Standard display (default)
  • 400x400 - Teaching focus
  • 600x600 - Full detail view

Output Formats

Diagrams are rendered as SVG (vector graphics):
  • Scales to any size without losing quality
  • Loads quickly
  • Works on all devices
  • Saved to /public/molecules/ in your project
The AI will provide embed code like:
<img src="/molecules/caffeine.svg" alt="caffeine" width="300" height="300" />

Common Use Cases

Organic Chemistry

Add structures of all functional groups.
Show the reaction mechanism with molecular diagrams.
Add before and after structures for the esterification reaction.

Biochemistry

Add the structures of all 20 amino acids.
Show the glucose and fructose molecules side by side.
Add the structure of DNA bases.

Pharmacology

Add the structure of paracetamol.
Show the molecular structure of ibuprofen.
Compare the structures of similar drugs.

General Chemistry

Add the structure of a water molecule.
Show examples of ionic and covalent structures.
Add diagrams for the hydrocarbons series.

Example Prompts

Adding Single Structures

Add the molecular structure of caffeine.
Show the benzene ring structure.
Add a diagram of the ethanol molecule.

Comparing Structures

Show the structures of methanol and ethanol side by side.
Add a comparison of glucose and fructose.
Display the isomers of butane.

In Context

In the section about alcohols, add the structures of the first three alcohols.
Add molecular diagrams wherever compounds are mentioned.
Include structures in the organic chemistry flashcards.

For Assessments

Add a blank space where students should draw the structure.
Show the reactants but not the products.
Add the structure with one part missing for students to complete.

Tips for Chemistry Content

Be Specific

Use the full molecule name or formula to avoid confusion between similar compounds

Consider Context

Think about whether students need to see the structure or draw it themselves

Size Appropriately

Use 400-600px for teaching, 200-300px for inline reference

Search First

Search by name to get the correct SMILES before rendering

How It Works

Behind the scenes, the chemistry tools use:
  1. PubChem - NCBI’s open chemistry database with millions of compounds
  2. RDKit - Industry-standard cheminformatics library for rendering
  3. SMILES notation - A text string that encodes molecular structure
1

Search

The AI searches PubChem for your molecule by name, formula, or SMILES
2

Get SMILES

PubChem returns the canonical SMILES notation for the structure
3

Render

RDKit generates a 2D SVG diagram from the SMILES
4

Embed

The diagram is saved and embedded in your content

Limitations

The chemistry tools work with molecules in the PubChem database. Very unusual, proprietary, or newly discovered molecules may not be available.
If a molecule isn’t found:
  • Try an alternative name (common vs IUPAC)
  • Use the chemical formula instead
  • Check the spelling
  • Try searching by SMILES if you have it from another source