Oxygen Transfer Characteristics of Miniaturized Bioreactor Systems

Since their introduction in 2001 miniaturized bioreactor systems have made great advances in function and performance. In this article the dissolved oxygen (DO) transfer performance of submilliliter microbioreactors, and 1–10 mL minibioreactors was examined. Microbioreactors have reached k(L)a values of 460 h(-1), and are offering instrumentation and some functionality comparable to production systems, but at high throughput screening volumes. Minibioreactors, aside from one 1,440 h(-1) k(L)a system, have not offered as high rates of DO transfer, but have demonstrated superior integration with automated fluid handling systems. Microbioreactors have been typically limited to studies with E. coli, while minibioreactors have offered greater versatility in this regard. Further, mathematical relationships confirming the applicability of k(L)a measurements across all scales have been derived, and alternatives to fluorescence lifetime DO sensors have been evaluated. Finally, the influence on reactor performance of oxygen uptake rate (OUR), and the possibility of its real-time measurement have been explored. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2013; 110: 1005–1019. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.