Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification

The dawn of the new millennium saw a trend towards the dedicated use of microfluidic devices for process intensification in biotechnology. As the last decade went by, it became evident that this pattern was not a short-lived fad, since the deliverables related to this field of research have been con...

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Main Authors: Pedro Fernandes, Marco P.C. Marques
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2011-09-01
Series:Molecules
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/16/10/8368/
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author Pedro Fernandes
Marco P.C. Marques
author_facet Pedro Fernandes
Marco P.C. Marques
author_sort Pedro Fernandes
collection DOAJ
description The dawn of the new millennium saw a trend towards the dedicated use of microfluidic devices for process intensification in biotechnology. As the last decade went by, it became evident that this pattern was not a short-lived fad, since the deliverables related to this field of research have been consistently piling-up. The application of process intensification in biotechnology is therefore seemingly catching up with the trend already observed in the chemical engineering area, where the use of microfluidic devices has already been upgraded to production scale. The goal of the present work is therefore to provide an updated overview of the developments centered on the use of microfluidic devices for process intensification in biotechnology. Within such scope, particular focus will be given to different designs, configurations and modes of operation of microreactors, but reference to similar features regarding microfluidic devices in downstream processing will not be overlooked. Engineering considerations and fluid dynamics issues, namely related to the characterization of flow in microchannels, promotion of micromixing and predictive tools, will also be addressed, as well as reflection on the analytics required to take full advantage of the possibilities provided by microfluidic devices in process intensification. Strategies developed to ease the implementation of experimental set-ups anchored in the use of microfluidic devices will be briefly tackled. Finally, realistic considerations on the current advantages and limitation on the use of microfluidic devices for process intensification, as well as prospective near future developments in the field, will be presented.
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spelling doaj.art-efb632415a9042188fae5c4b31fa14a72022-12-22T00:49:46ZengMDPI AGMolecules1420-30492011-09-0116108368840110.3390/molecules16108368Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess IntensificationPedro FernandesMarco P.C. MarquesThe dawn of the new millennium saw a trend towards the dedicated use of microfluidic devices for process intensification in biotechnology. As the last decade went by, it became evident that this pattern was not a short-lived fad, since the deliverables related to this field of research have been consistently piling-up. The application of process intensification in biotechnology is therefore seemingly catching up with the trend already observed in the chemical engineering area, where the use of microfluidic devices has already been upgraded to production scale. The goal of the present work is therefore to provide an updated overview of the developments centered on the use of microfluidic devices for process intensification in biotechnology. Within such scope, particular focus will be given to different designs, configurations and modes of operation of microreactors, but reference to similar features regarding microfluidic devices in downstream processing will not be overlooked. Engineering considerations and fluid dynamics issues, namely related to the characterization of flow in microchannels, promotion of micromixing and predictive tools, will also be addressed, as well as reflection on the analytics required to take full advantage of the possibilities provided by microfluidic devices in process intensification. Strategies developed to ease the implementation of experimental set-ups anchored in the use of microfluidic devices will be briefly tackled. Finally, realistic considerations on the current advantages and limitation on the use of microfluidic devices for process intensification, as well as prospective near future developments in the field, will be presented.http://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/16/10/8368/microfluidic devicesbioprocess intensificationmodeling and simulation
spellingShingle Pedro Fernandes
Marco P.C. Marques
Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification
Molecules
microfluidic devices
bioprocess intensification
modeling and simulation
title Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification
title_full Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification
title_fullStr Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification
title_full_unstemmed Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification
title_short Microfluidic Devices: Useful Tools for Bioprocess Intensification
title_sort microfluidic devices useful tools for bioprocess intensification
topic microfluidic devices
bioprocess intensification
modeling and simulation
url http://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/16/10/8368/
work_keys_str_mv AT pedrofernandes microfluidicdevicesusefultoolsforbioprocessintensification
AT marcopcmarques microfluidicdevicesusefultoolsforbioprocessintensification