Introduction to solid-state fermentation bioreactors

Abstract

This book is about the design and operation of bioreactors for SSF. The current chapter briefly introduces the various bioreactor types, which will be described in more detail in Chaps. 6 to 11. Chapter 4 considers the heat and mass transfer phenomena that occur within bioreactors in a qualitative manner, while Chap. 5 shows how these heat and mass transfer phenomena are intimately linked to the question of how to design a large-scale SSF bioreactor; this discussion will highlight the need for mathematical models as tools in the scale-up process (Fig. 3.1). This book is written assuming that you are doing laboratory studies on a particular application of SSF, and the results give you confidence that you can develop a commercial process, for which you require a large-scale bioreactor. After undertaking the necessary kinetic characterization studies outlined in Chaps. 14 to 17, your task is to choose an appropriate bioreactor type, to design and build it, and then to operate it optimally. Clearly, the principles developed in this book are also appropriate for the situation in which you already have a process operating in a large-scale bioreactor, but in which the bioreactor was not designed based on engineering principles, and therefore you need to optimize its operation. Note that in this book we are concentrating on the bioreactor itself. In all bioreactors there are various auxiliary operations and equipment. We do not cover bioreactor loading, unloading, and sterilization, but given the importance of the aeration system, Chap. 29 considers how it is possible to provide air at a desired flow rate, temperature, and humidity, and to change these conditions during the process. Chapters 26 and 28 consider the monitoring of the bioreactor and implementation of control schemes. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2006.