Modeling of an immobilized-cell three-phase fluidized-bed bioreactor

A mathematical model of a three-phase, tapered, fluidized-bed bioreactor has been developed. This model includes the effects of the tapered bed, a variable dispersion coefficient, and the concentration profile inside the biocatalyst bead on the reaction rate within the bed. Parameters in this model were obtained by adjusting them, within a realistic range, such that the square of the difference between the values predicted by the model and those obtained experimentally was minimized. The model was found to predict experimentally obtained concentration profiles quite accurately. It also demonstrates the need to include the effects of variable dispersion in three-phase systems where the gas phase is being generated inside the reactor, as the dispersion coefficient varied by more than an order of magnitude across the bed.