Techno-economic evaluation of solvent impregnated particles in a bioreactor

Most fermentation products have a feedback inhibiting effect on the host organism. In situ product recovery (ISPR) can be a means to overcome this product inhibition in fermentations. Particles such as solvent impregnated resins or capsules can be valuable tools for product recovery based on extraction. To evaluate, which kind of particle will be feasible for a certain kind of fermentation product an evaluation is presented here. Furthermore, an assessment is made what the impact is of ISPR for enhancing productivities in relatively non-inhibiting (lactic acid), fairly inhibiting (phenol) and severely inhibiting (erythromycin) fermentation products. A process containing solvent impregnated resins or capsules is evaluated based on enhanced productivities and cost-effectiveness. It is shown that applying these particles inside a fermentor can result in a decrease in ±30% of total manufacturing costs for pharma-intermediate production.