Bioreactors 

or fermentors are a system where fermentation takes

place. The organisms and enzymes are majorly introduced for the
extraction of products in the process of fermentation in a bioreactor. The
microorganisms are given a suitable environment to enhance their growth
and thus making the products on a large scale. The contamination check
is a major concern which is checked thoroughly. The cultivation of
recombinant therapeutic proteins, mammalian, insect cells, etc is carried
on in the process.
Types of Fermentors

There are various types of fermentors that are described below-

1. Continuous Stirred Tank Bioreactor

2. Airlift  Bioreactor
3. Packed Bed  Bioreactor
4. Fluidized Bed  Bioreactor
5. Photobioreactor
6. Membrane Bioreactor
7. Bubble Column Bioreactors
Continuous Stirred Tank Bioreactor
 The continuous stirred-tank bioreactor consists of a vessel, pipes,
valves, pumps, agitator, shaft, impeller and a motor.
 Sparger is mostly used to add air to the culture medium under
pressure and the impellers serve as a gas distributor throughout the
fermentor and also break down the larger bubbles for a uniform
distribution.
 The motor power the bioreactor which helps in mixing cultures and
also there are sensors that can detect temperature, PH, dissolved
oxygen, glucose, lactic acid, ammonia, ammonium ion, and other
parameters in the culture medium.
 The main target of desired products enlists the cells or primary
metabolite which mosty acquire microorganisms like yeast or bacteria.

Advantages of continuous stirred tank reactor

 It is a continuous operation
 It has a good capture over temperature
 It provides a homogeneous environment for cell growth and
proliferation
 Easily adapts to two-phase runs
 It is quite cost-efficient in both investment and operation
Disadvantages of continuous stirred tank reactor
 Their mechanic agitation produces shear stress which may harm the
cultured cells. but this can be overcome by changing the shape and
diameter of the impeller blade or adding bovine serum albumin or
dextran
 Foaming can also cause a problem but again can be solved by
antifoaming agents.
Airlift  Bioreactor
 The medium of the vessel consists of a baffle or a draft tube
through which air is pumped. This might create a bubble in the medium
which ultimately helps in rising up through the baffle tube and drags
the surrounding fluid as well.
 This, in the process, stirs up the contents by air.
 There are two types of airlift bioreactors –Internal loop type,
External loop type
 Internal-loop airlift bioreactor has a single container with a draft
carrying out the fermentation process.
 External loop airlift bioreactor has an external loop to separate
samples or liquids in different channels carrying out fermentation.

Airlift  Bioreactor Advantages

 It produces very little shear stress, less friction
 It requires fewer efforts to construct the bioreactor.
 It is cost-efficient
 Less energy is required
Airlift  Bioreactor Disadvantages
 High Pressure is required in this system
 No shaft is present which helps as a foam breaker which creates a
major drawback.
Packed Bed  Bioreactor
 Packed-bed bioreactors are tubular reactors which are stuffed with
an immobilized enzyme or microbial cells as biocatalysts as
immobilization enhances the stability of the enzyme and these enzymes
can be utilized multiple times
 The substrate is then allowed to flow through the packed-bed
bioreactor and it is generally operated in a single pass.

Advantages of Packed Bed  Bioreactor

 It’s quite easy to operate
 It provides better quality
 The products can be controlled.
Disadvantages of Packed Bed  Bioreactor
  As the substrate and product molecules are carried out both in and
out of the carrier matrix during the reaction there is a problem of
external mass transfer resistance.
Fluidized Bed  Bioreactor
 A fluidized bed bioreactor is an immobilized cell reactor which is a
combination of stirred tank and packed bed continuous flow reactors.
 It can be explained as beds of regular molecules that are suspended
in a flowing liquid stream.
 This can be used for particles such as immobilized enzymes,
immobilized cells, and microbial flocs.
 Immobilized-cell particles are retained in the bed by gravity  critical
parameter here
is the settling velocity
 It involves cell as biocatalysts including  3 phases – gas-liquid-solid.

Advantages of Fluidized Bed  Bioreactor

 It is used for wastewater treatment and hydrogen production.
Disadvantages of Fluidized-Bed  Bioreactor
 It requires more energy in order to achieve fluidization in the
bioreactor.
Photobioreactor
 These are carried out either by exposing to sunlight or artificial
illumination.
 These are majorly used for the cultivation of algae.
 The temperature range used is between 25-40degreeC

Photobioreactor Advantages
 Contamination is lower.
 It can be space-saving as it can be placed vertically, horizontally or
at an angle, indoors or outdoors.
Photobioreactor Disadvantages
 The control of PH and temperature is quite difficult
 It is somewhere susceptible to contamination.
Membrane Bioreactor
 It consists of a biological reactor with suspended biomass and solids
removal by ultra- and microfiltration membranes.
 It is used for alcoholic fermentation, solvents, organic acid
production, wastewater treatment.
 It involves high-quality effluent through the membranes and
eliminates the sedimentation and filtration processes.
 The membrane materials mostly used are polysulfonte, polyamide
and cellulose acetate.

Advantages of Membrane Bioreactor

 The loss of the enzyme is minimized.
 Effluent quality is high
 The effluent is properly disinfected from all the pathogenic microbes
Disadvantages of Membrane Bioreactor
 Quite costly and energy-consuming
 The aeration is limited
 Membrane pollution is also a drawback
Bubble Column Bioreactors
 The bioreactor involves agitation by density-driven fluid motions
and sparger is used to provide air into the continuous liquid phase at
the bottom of the reactors
 The fluid mixed intensively at high gas flow rates when convective
flows become turbulent.

Advantages of Bubble Column Bioreactors

  It acquires good heat and mass transfer
 Easy to operate
 Low maintenance
Disadvantages of Bubble Column Bioreactors
  Backmixing is a major drawback which adversely affects product
conversion.