EFFECT OF INTERFACIAL FORCES ON THE SPATIAL HOMOGENEITY OF kLa IN BUBBLE COLUMN BIOREACTORS

Predicting the volumetric mass transfer coefficient (k_La) in bioreactors is essential for bioprocess productivity. While interfacial forces dictate gas-liquid hydrodynamics, their effects on k_La spatial homogeneity remain less explored. This study uses CFD simulations to evaluate how combinations of drag (D), lift (L), and turbulent dispersion (TD) forces influence the volumetric distributions of slip velocity (u_slip), gas volume fraction (α_G), and k_La. Results showed that while the absence of TD leads to broad distributions with stagnant zones, its inclusion promotes radial gas redistribution, narrowing the profiles and shifting mean values away from zero. This highlights that the TD force is essential to accurately predict the spatial homogeneity of k_La.