Prediction of the fixed-bed reactor behaviour using dispersion and plug-flow models with different kinetics for immobilised enzyme

The behaviour of fixed-bed reactors, which have an immobilised enzyme on the packing surface, was studied considering steady-state conditions and external mass transfer resistance in the fluid around catalyst spherical particles. Solutions were obtained by integration of the plug-flow model equation and by the orthogonal collocation method of the second order differential equation of the axial dispersion flow model. Both models were analysed for lactose hydrolysis with P-galactosidase immobilised on chitosan using different kinetic reaction mechanisms after determining the specific parameters. The calculated results show the importance of the hydrodynamic and kinetic reaction parameters for error reduction in the prediction of the experimental behaviour. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.