Aim
The aim of the course is to provide the student with understanding and skills to enable them to analyse a biotechnical process in a quantitative fashion. The student should be able to make the quantitative analysis on the cellular as well as the reactor level. This will provide the basis for the identification of critical factors in the design and scale-up of processes in biotechnology.

Knowledge and understanding
For a passing grade the student must

• understand the importance of global analysis of metabolic networks for the design of genetically modified production organisms

• understand the interaction between physical transport phenomena and the microbial metabolism in a bioreactor

• be able to identify critical factors in the scale-up of processes in biotechnology, and qualitatively compare different process options.

Skills and abilities
For a passing grade the student must

• be able to quantitatively analyse experimental results on the macro-level, e.g. by making carbon- and degree of reduction balances

• be able to set up stoichiometric network models for metabolic networks

• be able to model microbial kinetics

• be able to execute reaction engineering calculations for the design of bioreactors, including size, stirrer effect, mass transfer capacity, and cooling requirements

• be able to make a reasonable choice of reactor, substrate, and production organism for a given biotechnical process

Contents
The course treats processes in biotechnology in a quantitative fashion on both the cellular and the reactor level. The following topics are covered: Metabolic reactions, stoichiometry, the C-mol concept, degree of reduction, thermodynamics in microbial systems, modelling of metabolic networks, reaction kinetics, design of biotechnical processes, mass transfer, and scale-up of biotechnical processes.

The course consists of lectures, tutorials and assignments.

A significant part of the course is allocated to quantitative problem solving. The problem solving includes both short examples and somewhat more complex problems which are dealt with by computer simulations. The written examination is focused on problem solving.

Literature
Nielsen J, Villadsen, J och Lidén, G: Bioreaction Engineering Principles, 2nd ed. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Press 2003. ISBN: 0-306-47349-6.