Modeling and scale-up of the unsterile scleroglucan production process with Sclerotium rolfsii ATCC 15205

An empirical model was applied to describe the growth related formation of scleroglucan in batchwise cultivation of Sclerotium rolfsii. In this case, the level of oxygen supply controls the carbon flux into glucan, biomass, and CO2 evolution and therefore determines the yield coefficients YGlucan/BDM and YBDM/O2. It was observed that scleroglucan formation is enhanced under microaerobic conditions. However, as the empirical model and data of actual batch cultivations show, different maxima exist for product end concentration [g/l] and volumetric productivity [g/ld] depending on the total oxygen uptake during cultivation. A sufficient bulk mixing of the highly viscous culture suspension becomes particularly important during large-scale cultivations. In addition, the scleroglucan production process proved to be shear sensitive. A correlation between the attainable molecular weight of the glucan and the stirrer tip velocity in bioreactors of different sizes is presented. For all these reasons, a scale-up of this process is very complex. Large-scale cultivations under microaerobic conditions, aiming for maximum product end concentration, were slowed down by poor bulk mixing leading to a lower carbon flux into glucan formation. On the other hand, a scale-up designed for maximum volumetric productivity using high oxygen supply was successfully conducted up to a reactor volume of 1.500 l. To minimize the loss in product quality (molecular weight of the glucan) due to high stirrer tip velocities, a mixing concept was developed employing reduced agitation combined with maximum aeration to secure a sufficient axial bulk mixing in the reactor.