Bioreactors are expected to provide optimum conditions for growth and product formation of microorganisms or the cell culture with the aim of maximising product yield.
The oxygen transfer rate (OTR), and the kLa value in particular, are the decisive parameters for the design of bioreactors. The volumetric mass transfer coefficient kLa is used as the efficiency ratio of the transport of a gas from the gaseous phase to the liquid phase. In biotechnological processes, the kLa coefficient indicates the efficiency of oxygen supply to microorganisms in a bioreactor.
Possible measures to increase the kLa value under gentle process conditions, which will in turn improve the overall performance of the organic process, include for example: increased agitator speed and gassing rate, optimisation of fermenter and agitator geometry, enlarging the phase boundary (e.g. by aeration with finer gas bubbles) or optimisation of the media composition.
Since the kLa value depends on numerous factors, it cannot be precisely calculated but needs to be determined by means of kLa measurement at critical process points. ZETA provides a best-in-class measuring methode to enable QbD principles:
The following services are provided by ZETA Experts:
