CFD-Based and Experimental Hydrodynamic Characterization of the Single-Use Bioreactor XcellerexTM XDR-10

Understanding the hydrodynamic conditions in bioreactors is of utmost importance for the selection of operating conditions during cell culture process development. In the present study, the two-phase flow in the lab-scale single-use bioreactor XcellerexTM XDR-10 is characterized for working volumes from 4.5 L to 10 L, impeller speeds from 40 rpm to 360 rpm, and sparging with two different microporous spargers at rates from 0.02 L min−1 to 0.5 L min−1. The numerical simulations are performed with the one-way coupled Euler–Lagrange and the Euler–Euler models. The results of the agitated liquid height, the mixing time, and the volumetric oxygen mass transfer coefficient are compared to experiments. For the unbaffled XDR-10, strong surface vortex formation is found for the maximum impeller speed. To support the selection of suitable impeller speeds for cell cultivation, the surface vortex formation, the average turbulence energy dissipation rate, the hydrodynamic stress, and the mixing time are analyzed and discussed. Surface vortex formation is observed for the maximum impeller speed. Mixing times are below 30 s across all conditions, and volumetric oxygen mass transfer coefficients of up to 22.1 h−1 are found. The XDR-10 provides hydrodynamic conditions which are well suited for the cultivation of animal cells, despite the unusual design of a single bottom-mounted impeller and an unbaffled cultivation bioreactor.

Two-Phase Flow Mass Transfer Analysis of Airlift Pump for Aquaculture Applications

Airlift pumps can be used in the aquaculture industry to provide aeration while concurrently moving water utilizing the dynamics of two-phase flow in the pump riser. The oxygen mass transfer that occurs from the injected compressed air to the water in the aquaculture systems can be experimentally investigated to determine the pump aeration capabilities. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of various airflow rates as well as the injection methods on the oxygen transfer rate within a dual injector airlift pump system. Experiments were conducted using an airlift pump connected to a vertical pump riser within a recirculating system. Both two-phase flow patterns and the void fraction measurements were used to evaluate the dissolved oxygen mass transfer mechanism through the airlift pump. A dissolved oxygen (DO) sensor was used to determine the DO levels within the airlift pumping system at different operating conditions required by the pump. Flow visualization imaging and particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements were performed in order to better understand the effects of the two-phase flow patterns on the aeration performance. It was found that the radial injection method reached the saturation point faster at lower airflow rates, whereas the axial method performed better as the airflow rates were increased. The standard oxygen transfer rate (SOTR) and standard aeration efficiency (SAE) were calculated and were found to strongly depend on the injection method as well as the two-phase flow patterns in the pump riser.