1. A system for emulating a lab-on-a-chip design, the system comprising: a plurality of electrically-powered controllable chemical process modules, each chemical process module comprising at least one chemical flow input port, at least chemical flow output port, at least one communications interface employing a communications protocol and receiving communications signals, and at least one electrically controllable element responsive to received communications signals; chemical flow interconnections among at least two of the plurality of controllable chemical process modules, the chemical flow interconnections comprising a chemical flow path connecting the chemical flow output port of a first chemical process module with a second chemical process module; a network for carrying communications signals, the network connecting with the control interface of the first chemical process module and with the second chemical process module, the network additionally providing a connection to a data processor, the data processor for executing algorithms for controlling the at least one at least one electrically controllable element comprised by the first and second chemical process modules; and wherein the system is configured so that an algorithm executing in the data processor can control the plurality of electrically-powered controllable chemical process modules to emulate aspects of the operation of a design for a physically smaller lab-on-a-chip system.