Student team from TU Kaiserslautern wins first place in competition with self-built bioreactor

They are pleased about the first place (from left to right): Jakob Walther (research associate BioVT, team supervisor), Jens Christmann (research associate BioVT, team supervisor), Tobias Melchior (BCI student), Roland Ulber (Head of the BioVT department), Wolfgang Laudensack (BCI student), William Ly (BCI student), Patrick Schiller (BCI student). (Photo: Koziel/TUK)

Building a bioreactor with only a 99 euro budget – that was the focus of the "99-euro Bioreactor Competition" at the Technical University (TU) Dresden. Such reactors are used in research to cultivate microorganisms. A student team from the Department of BioProcess Engineering at the Technical University of Kaiserslautern (TUK) also took on this challenge and secured first place. The competition is held annually by the BioProcess Engineering Network Dresden e. V. at TU Dresden.

The students Patrick Schiller, Wolfgang Laudensack, Tobias Melchior, and William Ly constructed a functional bioreactor with a limited financial budget. These reactors are used in biotechnology to grow microorganisms. They provide the optimal conditions for the microorganisms, such as temperature, pH value, and oxygen levels. This technology is also of interest to industry, as it allows for the production of various substances and active ingredients. Such processes are also used in brewing beer or producing yogurt.

The goal of the competition was to cultivate the bacterium Vibrio natriegens after 24 hours of cultivation at as high a cell density as possible, thereby achieving a high biomass concentration. This bacterium has many properties that could be highly advantageous for future applications in biotechnology, including an extremely high growth rate and a large substrate uptake.

So far, there is little experience with this microorganism in the field of bio-process engineering. The students had to apply their knowledge from their studies in bio- and chemical engineering. Laboratory work helped them better understand the growth behavior of the bacteria.

In addition to technical knowledge, skills from construction engineering and computer science were required to program the autonomous control system. Jens Christmann and Jakob Walther from the Department of BioProcess Engineering supervised the Kaiserslautern students during their work.

A total of nine teams participated in the competition with their self-built technology. The jury evaluated the biomass produced in the reactors. The team from TUK performed the best and secured first place.

Contact person:

Jens Christmann
Department of BioProcess Engineering
Email: christmann[at]mv.uni-kl.de
Phone: 0631 205-5444

Jakob Walther
Email: walther[at]mv.uni-kl.de
Phone: 0631 205-5503