What is the difference between a chemical reactor and a bioreactor?
The main difference between chemical reactors and bioreactors lies in their design and purpose. Below we explain the differences between the two through 6 dimensions.
1. Working principle
A chemical reactor is a device for chemical reactions, usually consisting of a container containing reactants, catalysts and media, and its main purpose is to obtain the desired product through chemical reactions under certain conditions.
A bioreactor is a device for biological reactions or processes, usually designed to provide suitable growth conditions and environment to support the growth and reproduction of microorganisms or cells. The main purpose of a bioreactor is to produce the desired product, such as protein, cell metabolites or other biological substances, through biological processes.
2. Equipment design structure
Chemical reacotor : The design structure of a chemical reactor revolves around: the volume of the reaction, the temperature control range, the temperature control accuracy, the pH of the reaction material, the state of the added material, the accuracy and time interval of the addition, the stirring form (based on the viscosity of the material), the discharge of the material after the reaction synthesis, and the recovery and separation of the solvent. The design also needs to consider factors such as operating pressure, temperature, material flow rate and reaction rate, and the use of catalysts.
Therefore, the design structure mainly includes: the size of the kettle, the number of kettle cover openings, the motor torque, the form of the stirring paddle, whether it is necessary to equip it with a condensation reflux and collection system, an automatic feeding system, an automatic liquid inlet system, discharge, etc. The design tends to be durable, corrosion-resistant and efficient.
Bioreactor: whether it is suitable for large-scale culture; whether it is mixed evenly; whether it can maintain appropriate environmental conditions; whether it is easy to operate and adapt to a variety of cell types; whether the quality of cell metabolites is guaranteed; and whether contamination is avoided.
In bioreactors, materials must also be biocompatible and sterile to prevent contamination.
The structure of the equipment, the kettle, the jacket heating and cooling system, the stirring system, the air intake system, the liquid intake system, the catalytic system, the lighting system, the PH adjustment system, the defoaming system, the DO system. And the most important PLC control and data recording and processing software.
3. Control Dimension
Chemical reactors tend to control reaction conditions such as temperature and pressure, evaporation rate, chemical corrosion resistance, reaction time, etc.
Bioreactors require more complex control systems to maintain optimal culture medium conditions for biological growth and metabolism, such as temperature, pH, oxygen content, amount of foam, sterilization, nutrient concentration, feed rate and accuracy, various flow meters, etc.
4. Common types:
Chemical reactors types: glass reactor, stainless steel reactor, reactors made of special materials (glass-lined reactor, pressure vessel, PTFE reactor, etc.), atmospheric pressure reactor, high pressure reactor, tubular reactor, tower reactor, fixed bed reactor, fluidized bed reactor, microchannel reactor, continuous flow reactor, piston flow reactor, multi-tube parallel tube reactor and U-tube reactor, etc.
Bioreactors types: stirred bioreactor; airlift bioreactor; immobilized cell bioreactor; photobioreactor; drum bioreactor; photobioreactor; disposable bioreactor
5. Application areas:
Application areas of chemical reactors:
Chemical production: widely used in various chemical reaction processes, organic chemical and fine chemical production; homogeneous reaction, gas phase reaction, liquid phase reaction; continuous reaction, such as petroleum hydrocarbon cracking to produce ethylene, vinyl chloride synthesis, etc. Pharmaceutical industry: used to produce various drug intermediates and finished drugs.
Environmental protection: Chemical reactors are also used in the field of environmental protection, such as wastewater treatment.
Energy industry: used in oil refining and natural gas processing, petroleum hydrocarbon cracking to produce ethylene, propylene and other processes
Material science: used to synthesize new materials and perform material modification
Food industry: used in the production of food additives and the modification of food ingredients.
Application fields of bioreactors:
Biopharmaceuticals: used to produce biological drugs such as antibodies, vaccines, cytokines, blood factors, enzymes, etc.
Environmental engineering: used for microbial digestion of pollutants such as wastewater and solid waste.
Biofuels: by cultivating and regulating microorganisms, bioreactors can achieve efficient conversion of biomass energy and production of biofuels. Food industry: bioreactors optimize the flavor and taste of food by simulating the fermentation process. Used to produce additives such as food enzymes.
Agriculture: used to produce biofertilizers and biopesticides, etc.
Scientific research: used to study the growth, metabolism and gene expression of organisms.
Other fields: used in cosmetics, health products, biomaterials and other fields.
6. Manufacturer's capabilities
Generally, manufacturers that produce chemical reactors cannot produce bioreactors with higher requirements, and the processing technology is slightly different.
Manufacturers that produce bioreactors can not only produce bioreactors with higher requirements, but also reduce the dimension to produce chemical reactors. However, pressure chemical reactors are an exception.
Keep exploring, consult our Specialist
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