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Poster Presentation 3-65
A Mathematical Analysis of Migration of Microorganisms in Packed Beds
R Bajpai1, J. Kim2 and M. Popovic3
1Chemical Engineering Department University of Missouri – Columbia W2061 EBE, Columbia, MO 65211
2Division of Food Science and Biotechnology Pukyong National University, 599-1 Daeyeon-Dong Nam-Gu Pusan 608-737, Republic of Korea
3Studiengang Biotechnologie, FB V, TFH-Berlin Seestrasse 64, D-13347, Germany
Telephone: (573) 882-3708; Fax: (573) 882-4940; E-mail: bajpair@missouri.edu
An advection-dispersion fluid-flow model was used along with several different models for microbial behavior in porous media to evaluate cell migration in packed soil beds. Factors considered for microbial behavior included linear and non-linear rate models for adsorption and desorption of microbial cells between aqueous and soil phases, sieving of cells by soil pores, chemotactic migration of cells, and uniform and non-uniform colony formation on soil particles. Advection-dispersion parameters for fluid flow in laboratory-packed columns were determined by fitting the model to potassium chloride breakthrough curves in the columns. The governing equations were non-dimensionalized and numerically solved using an Hermite Cubic-Spline finite difference algorithm. Effects of each of the factors representing microbial behavior in the columns on the distribution of cells in packed beds were predicted for pulse injection of cells at the mouth of packed columns. Breakthrough curves and time-variant concentration profiles in packed columns will be presented and discussed in this presentation.
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