INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY ROORKEE

CH-528
Biochemical Engineering
Introduction
By: Prof. Prasenjit Mondal
Department of Chemical Engineering
 Subject Code: CH-528
Course Title: Biochemical Engineering
Relative
Weightage

CWS 15 MTE 35 ETE 50

Credits: 3 Lectures: 3/week

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Course Content
S. No. Content
1. Introduction
2. Microbiology
3. Biochemistry
4. Kinetics of Enzyme Catalysed Reactions
5. Microbial Fermentation Kinetics
6. Sterilization
7. Aeration and Agitation
8. Scale-up of Bioreactors
9. Aerobic and Anaerobic Fermentations
10. Downstream Processing
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Suggested books

S. No. Authors / Name of Book / Publisher Year of

Publication

1. Bailey J.E. and Olis D.F., “Biochemical Engineering 1987

Fundamentals”,2nd Ed., McGraw-Hill.

2. Doble M. and Gummadi S.N., “Biochemical Engineering”, 2007

Prentice Hall.

3. Schuler M.L. and Kargi F., “Bioprocess Engineering”, 2nd 2002

Ed., Prentice Hall.

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Contents
1 Introduction
1.1 History
1.2 Early development
1.3 Biochemical process
1.4 Fundamentals of biochemical engineering
1.5 Role of biochemical engineering in the biochemical product synthesis
1.6 Further Advances in Biochemical Engineering
1.7 Bio-product regulation
1.8 Bioprocess Economics
1.9 Biochemical engineering application

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1 Introduction

• Biochemical engineering is a branch of engineering that applies the

principles of chemical engineering, biology, and microbiology to develop
and design processes that use living organisms or their components to
produce useful products.
• These products can be either chemicals or pharmaceuticals, food and
beverage products, fuels, or even industrial enzymes.
• Some common applications of biochemical engineering include the
development of bioreactors for large-scale production of proteins, the use
of microbes to break down waste and produce renewable fuels, and the
production of vaccines and pharmaceuticals using genetically engineered
cells.

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Cont..

Overall, biochemical
engineering plays a vital
role in developing
sustainable and eco-friendly
solutions to some of the
world's most pressing
challenges, including food
and energy security,
environmental
sustainability, and public
health.
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1.1 History of biochemical engineering

The history of biochemical engineering can be traced back to the mid-20th century,
when advances in microbiology and genetics led to new insights into the biochemical
processes that occur within living organisms.

From decade to decades, biochemical engineering continued to evolve, with

researchers exploring new ways to use microbes and other biological systems for the
production of a wide range of products.

Advances in genetic engineering and biotechnology in the 1980s and 1990s further
expanded the scope of biochemical engineering, enabling scientists to genetically
modify organisms to produce specific products or perform specific functions.

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Cont..

Today, biochemical engineering continues to play a critical role in the development of

sustainable and eco-friendly solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges,
including food and energy security, environmental sustainability, and public health.

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1.2 Early Development of Biochemical Engineering

 In the 1920s and 1930s, the development of penicillin and other antibiotics led
to increased interest in the field of biochemical engineering.
 During World War II the demand for drugs and other medical products
increased. This led to the development of large-scale fermentation processes
and the use of industrial bioreactors.
 In the post-war years, the development of new technologies such as
recombinant DNA technology and protein engineering also opened up new
possibilities for the field.
 Today, biochemical engineering is a thriving field that continues to evolve and
innovate, driven by new discoveries in biology and advances in engineering and
technology.

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1.3 Biochemical process

Biochemical processes are chemical that occur within living organisms or biological
systems. There are many different types of biochemical processes, including:

Metabolism: Metabolism refers to the biochemical processes that occur within an

organism to maintain life. This includes processes such as digestion, respiration, and
the breakdown and synthesis of molecules such as proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids.

Photosynthesis: This process involves the absorption of light by pigments such as

chlorophyll, the splitting of water molecules, and the synthesis of glucose from carbon
dioxide.

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Cont..

Fermentation: Fermentation is a process in which microorganisms such as

yeast and bacteria convert sugars into energy in the absence of oxygen.

Bioremediation: Bioremediation is a process in which microorganisms are

used to break down or degrade environmental pollutants such as
petroleum products, pesticides, and heavy metals.

Protein synthesis: Protein synthesis is the process by which cells build

proteins using information encoded in the genetic material of the cell.

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1.4 Biochemical Engineering Fundamentals

Some of the fundamental concepts in biochemical engineering include:

 Cell growth metabolism
 Enzyme kinetics
 Transport phenomena
 Bioreactor design
 Downstream processing
 Process optimization
 Bioprocess control and instrumentation
Overall, biochemical engineering is a multidisciplinary field that draws upon
principles from engineering, chemistry, and biology to design and optimize processes
for the production of biologically based products.

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1.5 Role of Biochemical Engineering in the Biochemical Product
Synthesis

The role of biochemical engineers has become more important in

recent years due to the dramatic developments of biotechnology.
 Biochemical engineers research and develop processes to use
microbial organisms and enzyme systems for manufacturing
chemical products.
 They need to design an effective bioreactor to cultivate the cells in
the most optimum conditions.
 The role of a biochemical engineer, let's look at a typical biological
process (bioprocess) involving microbial cells as shown in the figure
below
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Figure 1.1: To illustrate

the role of a biochemical Stock Culture Raw material
engineer, let's look at a
typical biological process
(bioprocess) involving
microbial cells as shown.
Shake Flask Medium
formation

Seed Fermenter Sterilization

Fermenter
Reactor
Recovery

Purification Final product

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1.6 Further Advances in Biochemical Engineering

 Biochemical engineering is a rapidly evolving field that applies

engineering principles to the design, development, and optimization of
biological processes for the production of useful products .
 There have been several recent advances in biochemical engineering,
including:
Advanced
Synthetic Genome
bioreactor
biology editing
design

Process
Process
modelling and
intensification
simulation

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Cont..

 Synthetic biology: Synthetic biology is the design and construction of

new biological parts, devices, and systems that do not exist in nature.

 Genome editing: Genome editing techniques, such as CRISPR/Cas9,

have made it possible to precisely modify the genetic makeup of
organisms, including microorganisms used in bioprocessing.

 Advanced bioreactor design: Advances in bioreactor design, such as

the development of single-use bioreactors and microfluidic bioreactors,
have made it possible to improve the efficiency, scalability, and
reproducibility of bioprocessing.

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Cont..

 Process intensification: This can be achieved through the use of

advanced separation techniques, such as membrane filtration and
chromatography, and the optimization of process conditions to maximize
yield and minimize waste.

 Process modeling and simulation: The use of computational models

and simulations has become increasingly important in biochemical
engineering for the design and optimization of bioprocesses.

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1.7 Bio-product regulation

 Bioproduct regulation refers to the process of regulating and monitoring

biologically-derived products, such as pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and
biotechnology products.
 These products are subject to rigorous regulatory oversight to ensure their
safety, efficacy, and quality before they can be approved for use by consumers.
European Medicines Agency (EMA) PMDA (Pharmaceuticals and
Regulatory Medical Devices Agency) is
Food Safety and Standards agencies around Japanese regulatory agency,
the world
Authority of India

FDA EMA PMDA FSSAI

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1.8 Bioprocess Economics

We examine the continuing role which economics plays bioprocess

research, development, and commercialization.
Subsequently, characteristic features of particular fermentation
processes are discussed, including fine chemicals, bulk chemicals, and
single cell protein in the examples, the relative cost importance of
substrate feedstocks, equipment, utilities, and bioreactor vs. recovery
sections will be examined, since identification of major cost areas
frequently pinpoints process economic weaknesses and thereby
indicates whether an engineering process improvement and/or strain
development would be most logical to pursue in process optimization.
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Cont..

Ethanol from biomass processes include not only fermentation and recovery
sections but may also requires substantial pre-treatment process to hydrolyse and
solubilize the biomass components.
Moreover, different countries (including the United States) have developed various
forms of tax subsidies or credits for ethanol plants: such device have a clear impact
on process economics.
Biological waste treatment provides the main process example for which substrate
conversion (rather than biomass production or product formation) is the operating
goal; here, biomass (cell sludge) disposal is responsible for a major fraction of plant
operating costs.

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1.9 Biochemical engineering application

Biochemical engineering has many applications across a wide range of

industries, including:

Pharmaceutical industry: Biochemical engineers are involved in the

development and optimization of bioprocesses for the production of
pharmaceuticals such as antibiotics, vaccines, and biologics.

Biotechnology industry: Biochemical engineers play a key role in the

development and optimization of bioprocesses for the production of
bioproducts such as enzymes, biofuels, and bioplastics.
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 Cont..

Food and beverage industry: Biochemical engineers are involved in

the development and optimization of bioprocesses for the
production of food and beverage products such as cheese, beer, and Food
yogurt. industry

Environ
Medical
mental
Environmental industry: Biochemical engineers are involved in the industry
industry
development and optimization of bioprocesses for the treatment of
wastewater and the production of renewable energy from biomass.
Biotech Pharma
nology ceutical
industry industry
Medical industry: Biochemical engineers may work on the design
and optimization of medical devices, drug delivery systems, and
tissue engineering processes.

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 Vaccine production
Vaccine production has several stages. Process of vaccine manufacture has
the following steps:
oInactivation – This involves making of the antigen preparation
oPurification – The isolated antigen is purified
oFormulation – The purified antigen is combined with adjuvants, stabilizers
and preservatives to form the final vaccine preparation.

• The initial production involves generation of the antigen from the microbe.
For this the virus or microbe is grown either on primary cells such as
chicken eggs (e.g. in influenza) or on cell lines or cultured human cells
(e.g. Hepatitis A). Bacteria against which the vaccines are developed may
be grown in bioreactors (e.g. Haemophilus influenzae type b). The antigen
may also be a toxin or toxoid from the organism (e.g. Diphtheria or
tetanus) or it may be part of the microorganism as well.
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• Proteins or parts from the organism can be generated in yeast, bacteria,
or cell cultures. Bacteria or viruses may be weakened using chemicals
or heat to make the vaccine (e.g. polio vaccine).

• After the antigen is generated, it is isolated from the cells used to

generate it. For weakened or attenuated viruses no further purification
may be required. Recombinant proteins need many operations involving
ultrafiltration and column chromatography for purification before they
are ready for administration

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• Antibody, also called immunoglobulin, a protective protein
produced by the immune system in response to the presence of a
foreign substance, called an antigen. Antibodies recognize and
latch onto antigens in order to remove them from the body. A
wide range of substances are regarded by the body as antigens,
including disease-causing organisms and toxic materials such as
insect venom.
• When an alien substance enters the body, the immune system is
able to recognize it as foreign because molecules on the surface
of the antigen differ from those found in the body. To eliminate
the invader, the immune system calls on a number of
mechanisms, including one of the most important—antibody
production.
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Cells

Enzyme
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• Antibodies are produced by specialized white blood cells called B
lymphocytes (or B cells). When an antigen binds to the B-cell surface,
it stimulates the B cell to divide and mature into a group of identical
cells called a clone.

• The mature B cells, called plasma cells, secrete millions of antibodies

into the bloodstream and lymphatic system.

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