Bioreactor Design Selection for Biohydrogen Production Using Immobilized Cell Culture System

Biohydrogen, through biological or fermentation processes, is one of the best options for clean energy production, as the process consumes low energy and is more environmentally friendly. The process involves various types of substrates and microorganisms, where, in particular, the microorganisms could be a single or coculture, introduced as free cells or in immobilized form. Among the advantages of immobilized culture in fermentation is its ability to maximize the physical retention of microbial biomass while minimizing mass transfer. Various types of bioreactor setups can be considered to facilitate the fermentation process using immobilized culture, such as continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR), upflow anaerobic sludge bioreactor (UASB), fluidized bed reactor (FBR), and packed/fixed bed reactor (PBR), or either in modified or integrated mode. This chapter focuses on the various bioreactor design that facilitates the fermentation process using immobilized culture for varying substrate and inoculum, both in batch and continuous systems. This chapter also compares the advantages and disadvantages of different bioreactor types, including the biohydrogen production performance of each bioreactor.