Characterization of an Aerosol-Based Photobioreactor for Cultivation of Phototrophic Biofilms

Autor: Dorina Strieth, Andreas Weber, Johannes Robert, Judith Stiefelmaier, Jonas Kollmen, Marianne Volkmar, Michael Lakatos, Volkmar Jordan, Kai Muffler, Roland Ulber
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Zdroj: Life, Vol 11, Iss 10, p 1046 (2021)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2075-1729
DOI: 10.3390/life11101046
Popis: Phototrophic biofilms, in particular terrestrial cyanobacteria, offer a variety of biotechnologically interesting products such as natural dyes, antibiotics or dietary supplements. However, phototrophic biofilms are difficult to cultivate in submerged bioreactors. A new generation of biofilm photobioreactors imitates the natural habitat resulting in higher productivity. In this work, an aerosol-based photobioreactor is presented that was characterized for the cultivation of phototrophic biofilms. Experiments and simulation of aerosol distribution showed a uniform aerosol supply to biofilms. Compared to previous prototypes, the growth of the terrestrial cyanobacterium Nostoc sp. could be almost tripled. Different surfaces for biofilm growth were investigated regarding hydrophobicity, contact angle, light- and temperature distribution. Further, the results were successfully simulated. Finally, the growth of Nostoc sp. was investigated on different surfaces and the biofilm thickness was measured noninvasively using optical coherence tomography. It could be shown that the cultivation surface had no influence on biomass production, but did affect biofilm thickness.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals