title: Engineering characterisation of a shaken, single-use photobioreactor for early stage microalgae cultivation using Chlorella sorokiniana.
abstract: This work describes the characterisation and culture performance of a novel, orbitally shaken, single-use photobioreactor (SUPBr) system for microalgae cultivation. The SUPBr mounted on an orbitally shaken platform was illuminated from below. Investigation of fluid hydrodynamics indicated a range of different flow regimes and the existence of 'in-phase' and 'out-of-phase' conditions. Quantification of the fluid mixing time (tm) indicated a decrease in tm values with increasing shaking frequency up to 90 rpm and then approximately constant tm values in the range 15-40 s. For batch cultivation of Chlorella sorokiniana, the highest biomass concentration achieved was 6.6 g L(-1) at light intensity of 180 μmol m2 s(-1). Doubling the total working volume resulted in 35-40% reduction in biomass yield while shaking frequency had little influence on culture kinetics and fatty methyl esters composition. Overall this work demonstrates the utility of the SUPBr for early stage development of algal cultivation processes.
authors.affiliation: The Advanced Centre for Biochemical Engineering, Department of Biochemical Engineering, University College London, Torrington Place, London WC1E 7JE, UK.
authors.forename: E O
authors.initials: EO
authors.lastname: Ojo
authors.affiliation: The Advanced Centre for Biochemical Engineering, Department of Biochemical Engineering, University College London, Torrington Place, London WC1E 7JE, UK.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Auta
authors.affiliation: The Advanced Centre for Biochemical Engineering, Department of Biochemical Engineering, University College London, Torrington Place, London WC1E 7JE, UK.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baganz
authors.affiliation: The Advanced Centre for Biochemical Engineering, Department of Biochemical Engineering, University College London, Torrington Place, London WC1E 7JE, UK. Electronic address: g.lye@ucl.ac.uk.
authors.forename: G J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Lye
mesh_terms: D061249:Batch Cell Culture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D018533:Biomass; D002708:Chlorella / Q000254:growth & development*; D057446:Hydrodynamics; D007700:Kinetics; D008027:Light; D058086:Microalgae; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D058433:Photobioreactors
keywords: Chlorella sorokiniana; Fatty acid methyl esters; Fluid hydrodynamics; Orbital shaking; Single-use photobioreactor