The application of corrugated parallel bundle model to immobilized cells in porous microcapsule membranes

Abstract

To describe immobilized cells in porous microcapsule membranes with straight pores, a novel model called corrugated parallel bundle model (CPBM) was utilized. In this model, a network was developed with 10 main pores each composing 10 pore elements. Cell growth kinetic in the network was examined using non-structural models. Effectiveness factor and pore plugging time were calculated by solving reaction-diffusion equation set via finite difference method. The findings revealed that diffusion coefficient for lower order reactions will create a lesser impact on the reduction of effectiveness factor. These findings also indicated that the use of such supporting carrier for cell immobilization could enhance the operational life of the system. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.