Biochemical Process Design
A Definition

Edward T. Woodruff has experience in the field of Biochemical Process Design.  This webpage sheet is information for your interest and edification.  Please see Home and Accomplishments to learn more about our contributions and performance results. 

The biochemical process design work applies (chemical) engineering disciplines to living systems. While humans might thought to be covered via the biochemical process design phrase, as used here the field of interest for biochemical process design is meant to cover other than humans.

At Grace Research Edward T. Woodruff was appointed to head up the bound enzyme task force.  Our job was to develop technology to make bound enzyme medical diagnostic tubing.  We also contributed biochemical process design to the amino acid parental nutritional therapy blending and packaging program.  This involved producing pyrogen free products. 

At W. R. Grace Research biochemical process design was done for packed column processes to make aspartic acid.  We also provided biochemical process design for making phenylalanine via fermentation. 

In biochemical process design the disciplines of reaction kinetics, heat and mass transfer, and fluid flow are applied to the field covered by biochemical process design. This means that the chemical engineer has a definite role to play in the biochemical process design as the disciplines listed here for biochemical process design come from the chemical engineering arena. There is an additional aspect, however. The field of biochemical process design covers the ground where living systems are involved. Biochemical process design goes beyond the scope of the “normal” chemical engineering meaning. Biochemical process design includes clean in place systems, sterilization, and inert gas stainless steel welding.

Biochemical process design is involved in the fields of fermentation as well as packed columns using whole cells or bound enzymes to achieve the reaction of interest. . Industrially biochemical process design has been done for fermentation to make penicillin, citric acid and ethyl alcohol for example. Biochemical process design has been applied to ethyl alcohol fermentation which is the one of most recent interest. Here biochemical process design was used in building plants to make an important oxygenated additive to gasoline that facilitates clean air requirements in those states that need oxygenates.

See also biochemical engineer and biochemical engineering.

See also Accomplishments.