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Abstract
Sooner or later, novel strains and bioprocesses need to be transferred from labs to large scale industrial bioreactors to achieve the successful translation from innovation to commercialization. Often enough this sensitive step of ‘scale-up’ coincides with non-wanted loss of production performance, i.e. with the deterioration of the crucial TRY values (titer, rates, yields). Accordingly, it is a challenging task to thoroughly understand underlying reasons and to prevent production failure.
The talk will start describing the problems of successful scale-up focusing on microbial bioprocesses. Next, lab-scale studies of IBVT will be presented explaining how relevant data quantifying microbial performance by simulating large-scale conditions in wet-lab experiments can be achieved. Thereof, models are identified that are linked to computational fluid dynamics for simulating the microbial performance in > 50 m³ bioreactors applying individual cell analysis with Euler-Lagrangian tools.
Beside simulation, the quantitative knowledge of microbial response under large-scale conditions may be exploited to engineer strains that are robust enough for withstanding even harsh industrial conditions. Examples will be given with respect to Escherichia coli.
Bio
Ralf Takors, born in Koblenz in 1966, studied mechanical and process engineering at RWTH Aachen, where he also obtained his habilitation with a dissertation entitled “Metabolic and Bioprocess Engineering – A Fruitful Symbiosis”. He worked at Evonik Degussa GmbH from 2004 to 2009 and has been the director of the Institute of Biochemical Engineering, University of Stuttgart, since 2009.
Prof. Takors holds leadership positions in various professional associations, including “Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering”, “Engineering Life Science” and the “Center of Systems Biology” at the University of Stuttgart.
In 2001 he received the Dechema Young Professor Award.
Should you have any questions or require accommodation to attend the event, please email amanda.hacio@utoronto.ca.