A scale-down two-compartment reactor with controlled substrate oscillations: Metabolic response of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Abstract

Substrate concentration gradients are likely to appear during large scale fermentations. To study effects of such gradients on microorganisms, an aerated scale-down reactor system was constructed. It consists of a plug flow reactor (PFR) and a stirred tank reactor (STR), between which the medium is circulated. The PFR, which is an aerated static mixer reactor, was characterized with respect to plug flow behaviour and oxygen transfer. A Bodenstein number of 15–220, depending on residence time and aeration rate, and a k_La of 500–1130 h⁻¹, depending mainly on aeration rate, were obtained. The biological test system used, was aerobic ethanol production by Saccharomyces cerevisiae, due to sugar excess. The ethanol concentration profile and the yield of biomass were compared in two fed-batch fermentations. In the first case, the feeding point of molasses was located at the inlet of the PFR. This simulates location of the feeding point in the segregated part of a heterogeneous reactor, with local high sugar concentrations. In the second mode of operation, as a control with good mixing conditions, the PFR was disconnected from the STR, into which the substrate was fed. Differences were found: Up to 6% less biomass was produced and a larger amount of ethanol was formed in the two-compartment reactor system, due to the uneven sugar concentration distribution. This emphasizes the importance of the location of, and the mixing conditions at, the feeding point in a bioreactor.