Industry-scale production of cultivated meat and the importance of valve contr

04 April, 2024

Control valves are integral to both the initial cell filtration and separation phase, as well as fermentation, and precision is essential throughout. Bennett highlights that Zeta, as well as development by the University of Queensland, has used Bürkert’s mass flow controllers to regulate cultivated meat production. These devices control temperature and gas with accuracy down to +/-0.3%, and a deviation in repeatability of just +/- 0.1%. Combined with possible flow control volumes as low as 0.005 litres per minute, this assures the accuracy required for large-scale cell production.

While a digital valve system helps to optimise this level of accuracy, it also increases control efficiency, important for scaling-up production while minimising cost. Typically, an industry-scale bioreactor features three or more mass flow controllers. Bürkert’s system maintains a central control unit that serves as a master over compliant devices, reducing cost and resources in installation and management. The mass flow controllers communicate via Bürkert’s EDIP digital network, which is based on CANopen, the predominant protocol in the automotive sector, chosen for its reliability.

Making the vision a reality

To ensure CIP protocols, material selection and design is fundamental. For hygienic applications, stainless steel is the benchmark, hence its prevalence in the pharmaceutical sector. While this is crucial for gas control, it’s equally important for temperature control, where steam is usually used to regulate a bioreactor. Painted carbon steel valves are sometimes offered as lower cost alternatives, but stainless steel is the de facto selection, thanks to its higher resistance to corrosion, smoother surface finish, and greater temperature tolerance.

The cultivated meat sector is on the brink of a distinct production increase, and this depends on the ability to transition from lab-scale to industrial-scale development. Valve modulation is integral, and while the precise control parameters are in development, the required technology base exists.

Sources:

1 https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/ news/what%E2%80%99s-been-going-%E2%80%98hamburger-professor%E2%80%99

2 https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/ news/what%E2%80%99s-been-going-%E2%80%98hamburger-professor%E2%80%9

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