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Haramaya University Haramaya Institute of Technology Department of Chemical Engineering Introduction To Biochemical Engineering Worksheet 2

This document contains 7 problems related to biochemical engineering and microbial growth kinetics using continuous stirred-tank reactors (CSTRs). The problems involve calculating growth and substrate conversion rates using Monod kinetics for various microorganisms grown under different conditions in single and dual CSTR systems. Key parameters like maximum growth and substrate uptake rates, half-saturation constants, and cell and product yields are provided.

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217 views

Haramaya University Haramaya Institute of Technology Department of Chemical Engineering Introduction To Biochemical Engineering Worksheet 2

This document contains 7 problems related to biochemical engineering and microbial growth kinetics using continuous stirred-tank reactors (CSTRs). The problems involve calculating growth and substrate conversion rates using Monod kinetics for various microorganisms grown under different conditions in single and dual CSTR systems. Key parameters like maximum growth and substrate uptake rates, half-saturation constants, and cell and product yields are provided.

Uploaded by

workisa
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Haramaya University

Haramaya Institute of Technology

Department of Chemical Engineering

Introduction to Biochemical Engineering Worksheet 2

1. A microorganisms is growing at its maximum specific growth rate. Conditions are the
following

Times(Min) Cell concentration(mg/L)


0 50
1 75
2 111
3 166
4 248
5 369
a. Calculate µmax
b. What will be the population size after 25 min?
2. Consider an organisms that follows the monod growth law with µmax =1h-1,Ks
=0.25g/dm3 and Yx/s =0.5. The reaction is to be carried out in a CSTR with a feed
substrate concertation of 20g/dm3.
a. Calculate the dilution rate for an existing cell concentration of 9.5 g/dm3
b. What is the dilution rate that will give the maximum product rate?
c. What is the dilution rate at which wash out occurs?
3. The bacteria X-II can be described by a simple Monod equation with µmax =0.8 h-1,
KS = 4 g/dm3 and YP/C=0.2 g/g and YS/C = 2.2. The process is carried out in a CSTR in
which the feed rate is 1000 dm3/h at a substrate concentration of 10 g/dm3.
a) What size fermenter is needed to achieve 90% conversion of the substrate?
b) What is the exiting cell concentration?
c) Determine the volumetric flow rate at which wash-out occurs and also the flow
rate at which the cell production rate is a maximum?
4. The growth rate of E.coliin synthetic medium can be expressed by Monod kinetics as
where Cs is the concentration of a limiting substrate, glucose. You are going to cultivate
E.coliin a steady-state CSTF (working volume: 10 L) with a flow rate of 7 L/hr. The
initial substrate concentration is 10 g/L and the cell yield constant (YX/S) is 0.6. The
feed stream is sterile. a) What will be the doubling time and the division rate of the cells
in the CSTF? b) What will be the cell and substrate concentrations of the outlet stream?
5. Suppose you have a microorganism that obeys the Monod equation:

where µmax = 0.7 hr-1 and KS = 5 g/L. The cell yield (Y X/S) is 0.65. You want to
cultivate this microorganism in either one fermenter or two in series. The flow rate and
the substrate concentration of the inlet stream should be 500 L/hr and 85 g/L,
respectively. The substrate concentration of the outlet stream must be 5 g/L.
a)If you use one CSTF, what should be the size of the fermenter? What is the cell
concentration of the outlet stream?
b. If you use two CSTFs in series, what sizes of the two fermenters will be most
productive? What are the concentration of cells and substrate in the outlet stream of the
first fermenter?
c. What is the best combination of fermenter types and volumes if you use two
fermenters in series?
6. Suppose you have an organism that obeys the Monod equation:

where µmax = 0.5 hr-1 and KS = 2 g/L.


The organism is being cultivated in a steady-state CSTF, where F =
100 L/hr, CSi = 50 g/L, and YX/S = 0.5.
a. What size vessel will give the maximum total rate of cell production?
b. What are the substrate and cell concentrations of the optimum fermenter in part
(a)?
c. If the exiting flow from the fermenter in part (a) is fed to a second fermenter
(CSTF), what should be the size of the second fermenter to reduce the substrate
concentration to 1 g/L?
d. If the exiting flow from the first fermenter in part (a) is fed to a second fermenter
whose size is the same as the first, what will be the cell and substrate concentrations
leaving the second fermenter?

7. You are going to cultivate yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, by using a 10 m3-fermenter


your company already owns. You want to find out the amount of ethanol the fermenter can
produce. Therefore, a chemostat study was carried out and the Monod kinetic parameters
for the microorganism grown in the glucose medium at 30°C, pH 4.8, were found to be: KS
= 0.0025 g/L and µmax = 0.25 h-1. The ethanol yield (Y P/S) is 0.44 (g/g) and cell yield (Y
X/S) is 0.019 (g/g). The inlet substrate concentration is 50 g/L.

a. What flow rate will give the maximum total ethanol production in the continuous
fermenter and what is the maximum ethanol production rate?

b. If you want to convert 95 percent of the incoming substrate, what must the
ethanol production rate be for the continuous fermenter?

c. If you have two 5 m3-fermenters instead of one 10 m3-fermenter, what is your


recommendation for the use of these fermenters to convert 95 percent of the
incoming substrate? Would you recommend connecting two fermenters in series to
improve the productivity? Why or why not?

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