Bioreactors:

An Artificial Life Support System

Presented by:
MITESH SHRESTHA

Contents
Introduction to Bioreactors
Types of Bioreactor designs
Conclusion

Bioreactors

Any manufactured or engineered device or system

that supports a biologically active environment

Types of Bioreactor designs

Stirred tank reactors
Bubble-column reactors
Air lift reactors
Drum rotating reactors
Immobilized plane cell reactors
Membrane reactors

Stirred tank reactors

Air is dispersed by mechanical agitation.

Advantages

Better control over the environment of the culture.

Disadvantages
Can cause damage to the cells
High energy demand
Complexity in construction
Difficult to scale up.

Bubble-column reactors

One of the simplest type of gas liquid bioreactors.

Advantages

Facilitates sterile operation

Less damaging to shear-sensitive cells

Scale up is relatively easy.

Disadvantages

Undefined fluid flow pattern inside the reactor.

Non-uniform mixing.

Air-lift reactors

Works on draught tube principle.

Advantages

Reasonable mixing with low shear

Operating cost is low.

Less contamination

Disadvantages

Insufficient mixing at high cell

densities.

Drum rotating reactors

Consists of horizontally rotating-drum on rollers

connected to a motor.

Advantages
High oxygen transfer.
Good mixing
Facilitated better growth and impart less
hydrodynamic stress.

Disadvantages

Difficult to scale up.

Immobilized plane cell reactors

Immobilization of plant cell into a suitable carriers.

Either in natural (alginate, agar) or synthetic

(polyacrylamide)

Membrane reactors

Cells are separated from growth medium by

membrane

Advantages

Environment is more easily controlled

Better control over cell density.

Reactor type Oxygen

transfer

Hydrodynamic Mixing
stress

Stirred-tank

Highly
destructive

Completely Difficult
uniform

Cell death;
contamination due
to moving parts

ST-low
Medium
agitation and
modified
impeller

Low

Reasonably Difficult
uniform

Insufficient mixing
at very high cell
densities

Bubblecolumn

Medium

Low

Nonuniform

Easy

Dead zones;
settling of cells due
to poor mixing

Air-lift

High

Low

Uniform

Easy

Dead zones at high

cell densities

Rotatingdrum

High

Low

Uniform

Difficult

Non-uniform
mixing at very
large scale.

High

Scale up

limitations

Conclusion

Hence, with the help of different types of

bioreactors, commercial production of
secondary metabolites is not only possible
but also profitable.

Thank you !