AI-designed components for improved bioreactor efficiency and scalability 

Project duration: July, 2023 – June, 2027 

The challenge

Bioreactors are vessels for biologically driven processing, such as fermentation. They produce useful materials such as fuels, proteins, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, among others. Bioreactors have the potential to disrupt conventional chemical processing, offering safer, bio-based alternatives.  

But to do so, they need to maintain the right levels of dissolved gases throughout the bioreactor, while supporting micro-organisms at high enough densities to be commercially viable. This can be challenging, especially for large bioreactors, because stirring and mixing requires a lot of energy.  

Representing a major input cost, these intensive energy requirements can curb the use of bioreactors for large-scale commercial production. That’s why our researchers are exploring a new paradigm in enhancing the energy efficiency of large-scale bioreactors.  

Our response

Our team is taking an interdisciplinary approach, combining and developing expertise from across the organisation Leveraging CSIRO’s AI4Design platform and the Future Digital Manufacturing Fund the team are digitally designing bespoke 3D printable components. These components will optimise mixing, reducing the need for agitation, easing energy demands, and improving gas transfer in large scale bioreactors.  

Research efforts are focussed on static mixers. These contain no moving parts, instead relying on the geometry of the mixing element to achieve mixing liquid/gas under flow. As such, they are an ideal candidate to disrupt traditional electric motor driven mixing systems found in bioreactors. 

Designs for static mixers are digitally manufactured using AI methods to optimise desirable performance characteristics. Optimised designs are digitally generated in their hundreds, and screened for their performance using computational fluid dynamics.  

These designs are then assessed in our bespoke experimental static mixer evaluation system. Using a tiered approach, high performing candidates from the experimental testing system are selected for validation in bioreactors.  

Impact

Industrial biomanufacturing is rapidly growing as we transition towards a bioeconomy, with substantial interest in Australia (Australia’s Synthetic Biology Roadmap – CSIRO). As a nascent manufacturing sector there are many opportunities for improvement. These include driving down costs such as electricity, which is required for powering pumps, mixing systems, and the pressurisation and distribution of gases in bioreactor vessels. 

This project will create impact by reducing the costs of large-scale bioproduction processes. More energy efficient bioreactors with improved productivities will generate triple bottom line impacts on economic viability and the associated environmental and societal benefits from increased uptake of biological processes for food, chemicals and other valuable resources.  

Team

Michael Breedon (Project lead), Harry Bowman, Robert Dark, Roshan Dodanwela, Geoff Dumsday, Carol Hartley, David Howard, Linda Howell, Craig Morton, Gerald Pereira, Richard Scalzo, Robert Speight, Prem Veneer, Yulu Wang, David Wollborn.