BioXplorer 5000: An Automated, Lab-Scale Bioreactor System

The BioXplorer 5000 is a lab-scale bioreactor platform available in sizes ranging from 1-5L and in high- and low-pressure variants. It can be utilized for a huge variety of applications, ranging from standard gas fermentation and aerobic cultures, to studies into decarbonizing high-pressure C1 gas fermentation.  It is able to closely mimic production scale conditions and is typically used in the early stages of scaling up a bioprocess within process development.

The high-pressure variant is especially useful for replicating the higher pressures present at the bottom of a culture medium column in a process-scale system, or processes that use elevated headspace pressure during the culture. This enables understanding of pressure effects on the bioprocess prior to scaling up.

Features and Options:

Vessel Types and Volumes

  • Interchangeable insulated vessels from 1-5 L available in both glass and Stainless Steel.
  • Stainless Steel reactors are available as high-pressure variants, capable of working pressures of up to 10 bar.
  • Both glass and Stainless Steel reactors are suitable for ambient pressure experiments.

Temperature Control

  • -50 ⁰C to 250 ⁰C as standard (circulator dependent)
  • Fine temperature control, with fluctuations normally lower than ±0.1 ⁰C

Sampling Systems

  • Sampling of the culture medium during an experiment is possible via active pumps, manual dip tubes, automated level control, or multisampling units, like the ASU.

Reagent Addition

  • Provided by fully automated liquid and gas feeds as well as volumetric syringe pumps. These solutions can be applied to both high and low-pressure systems.

Control Options

  • All relevant inputs can be logged, enabling automated monitoring and, where appropriate, feedback control of the reactor system.

Sensor Options

  • Temperature, pressure, pH, turbidity, conductivity.
  • Integration of third-party probes is possible, such as in-situ FTIR, DO, particle sizing probes, and Raman probes.

Stirring Available

  • Up to 2000 rpm/400 Ncm and are supplied in a wide range of materials and designs.

Intelligent Software Control and Analysis

  • The WinISO control software from H.E.L operates the BioXplorer 5000 system, allowing complicated, completely automated experiments to run without any supervision. This allows:
    • User-defined data-logging with adaptive tabular and graphical displays.
    • Reactor control with limitless step recipe planning, where plans can be modified online at any time without a break in the process.
    • Export of data functions and combining with in-house electronic laboratory notebooks and record-keeping systems.
    • Beginning and stopping reactors separately or concurrently.
    • The separate reactor temperature and agitation control.

Safety Features

  • Automatic user-configurable condition monitorig and shutdown procedures, to ensure user safety.
  • Automatic hardware and software fail-safes are installed on every system