title: Toluene removal in an automated cyclical bioreactor.
abstract: A control scheme was developed for the automation of toluene removal in a cyclical bioreactor. Toluene was added to the self-cycling fermentor by diffusion across a silicone membrane. Transient dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide evolution, and oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) were screened as potential control variables. Through experimentation, ORP was deemed most effective. Control algorithms based on real-time estimates of the first and second derivatives of the ORP signal were tested. Although both approaches resulted in stable operation of the reactor, average toluene removal efficiencies of 95% were realized when control was based on the second derivative. This was significantly higher than the 77% efficiencies obtained when the control scheme centered on the first derivative of the transient ORP signal. The system developed was self-regulating, ensuring that a high toluene removal rate, on the order of 1.1 g h(-1), was maintained from cycle to cycle.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, 3610 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B2, Canada.
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Cooper
authors.forename: S N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Liss
mesh_terms: D001331:Automation; D019149:Bioreactors; D005285:Fermentation; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D014050:Toluene / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014050:Toluene