Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Designs for a Homemade Bioreactor Complete w/ Pictures!

Horus - 17-12-2007 at 11:18

I found this online, hope y'all like it :D

https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/1419/1/jb0...

I'm glad I found it because it's exactly what I need for biosynthesis. I was mistaken about the rotary shaker: that's only
for lab-scale research, not large culture broths (like this is).

Xenoid - 17-12-2007 at 14:37

Hmmm... It's hardly rocket science!

Couldn't you have though up something like that for yourself.
Try some of the (very large) wide mouthed pickle jars from a delicatessen!

Make a plastic lid and fit an aquarium bubble stone, heater element, pH meter and stirrer, etc. - not too difficult.
Maybe even use a large glass fish tank (aquarium) - does it need to be round?

Magpie - 17-12-2007 at 17:25

The welding job on that agitator looks pretty bad. I thought that this was anathema for biological work. I have a relative who works for a company that fabricates vessels for the pharmaceutical industry. They require that the wetted surfaces are mirror smooth.

This doesn't mean, however, that one can't get some useful ideas from that article.

not_important - 17-12-2007 at 18:49

Round is easier to make sure you've got good mixing without putting too much energy into stirring; plus it's easier to clean - corners trap stuff.

A potential problem with plastic is leaching of unreacted monomer, catalyst, stabilisers, plasticisers, and so on. If you know what affects what you are growing, and know what's in or not in the plastic, then you're OK.

Horus - 18-12-2007 at 19:24

Quote:
Originally posted by Xenoid
Hmmm... It's hardly rocket science!

Couldn't you have though up something like that for yourself.
Try some of the (very large) wide mouthed pickle jars from a delicatessen!

Make a plastic lid and fit an aquarium bubble stone, heater element, pH meter and stirrer, etc. - not too difficult.
Maybe even use a large glass fish tank (aquarium) - does it need to be round?


Yeah I know it's not anything really complicated; it just helped a lot to see a design with pictures. Easier to visualize. I don't even need most of that stuff, all I really need is the airpump and stirrer, the antifoam too.

Xenoid - 18-12-2007 at 19:48

Quote:
Originally posted by Horus
Yeah I know it's not anything really complicated; it just helped a lot to see a design with pictures. Easier to visualize. I don't even need most of that stuff, all I really need is the airpump and stirrer, the antifoam too.


Try one of those large round fishbowls, put it on a magnetic stirrer hotplate! You can then precisely control the temperature and stirring at least. There are plenty of plans on the web for homemade magnetic stirrers using computer fans, as well. A fishbowl will let in lots of light as well if you need that for your process!

Horus - 20-12-2007 at 19:48

So far things are going good with the building . . . just making my shopping list haha. Some of those things are hard to find. It took me for-ever to find an air sparger (though it's not like it'd be really hard to make one). For the actual air-pump, I plan to use this:

http://morebeer.com/view_product/16607/

or something similar, as it filters the air well of spores and such (it would have to for what that product is intended for).

Magpie - 20-12-2007 at 20:14

That looks just like my aquarium air pump! Check them out before you buy.

arkos - 8-4-2014 at 04:00

Here's another example: http://www.biotechniques.com/BiotechniquesJournal/2008/Augus...

What useful things would be possible to produce with such a system?

bits and pieces

jwpa17 - 7-7-2014 at 17:56

This is something I'm quite interested in, because commercial laboratory bioreactors cost upwards of $10K.
Each of these has some useful information, but not necessarily a complete design.

And you might find some of the links here interesting:

DIY Lab Equipment

You need to decide whether you want to be able to sterilize your system, or if it is sufficient to sanitize it and inoculate with a large amount of your desired culture. Sterilization is better, but kind of hard for a home user. I have access to a large autoclave. You may have to wash the interior with, e.g., 70% ethanol. You want to be careful of materials selection, regardless.

Please, keep us updated.

Attachment: MonitoringAndControl.pdf (4.1MB)
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Attachment: MiniaturizedPhotobioreactor.pdf (2MB)
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Attachment: ForPlantScience.pdf (440kB)
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[Edited on 8-7-2014 by jwpa17]