Laboratory-scale photobiotechnology-current trends and future perspectives

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Bioeconomy
• Phototrophic Bioprocesses

Background:

• Phototrophic bioprocesses are crucial for future bioeconomy but often fail economically.
• Suboptimal light supply hinders scale-up and economic feasibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review microscale cultivation and modeling/simulation trends in photobiotechnology.
• To identify challenges and opportunities for improving phototrophic bioprocesses.

Main Methods:

• Examined microfluidic chips and microtiter plates for microscale cultivation.
• Reviewed modeling and simulation approaches for photobioreactor design and operation.
• Analyzed quantitative models for mixing, mass transfer, and light dispersion.

Main Results:

• Microfluidic chips are ideal for physiological data acquisition; microtiter plates for screening.
• Benchtop photobioreactor design is well-studied by modeling and simulation.
• Flexible light supply remains a key challenge for microscale systems.

Conclusions:

• Combining microscale data with hybrid models can integrate metabolism and reactor simulation.
• This integration is key for knowledge-based scale transfer of phototrophic bioprocesses.
• Further improvements in light supply are critical for commercialization.