Thesis defence

Biological systems are essential in biopharmaceuticals, where rising demand requires efficient bioreactor operation. Scaling from lab to industry is limited by gradients from poor mixing, reducing yields through cell stress and adaptation. This work quantified dissolved oxygen, pH, and kLa gradients in a 20 L bioreactor. While cell density and metabolite gradients were inconclusive, metabolic responses were modeled with modified Monod kinetics, which adapted well to differing conditions.

The representative elementary volume (REV) is a fundamental concept in the study of porous media, describing the minimum volume at which a material property can be considered statistically representative of the whole.

Determining an REV is essential for linking pore-scale measurements to continuum-scale models used in engineering and geoscience. The results of this work demonstrate that REVs can be identified from relatively small fractions of the total image volume given that certain conditions are met, offering a balance between accuracy and computational efficiency.

Sustainable Agrochemical Delivery Systems Based on Cellulose Nanocrystals and Chitosan by Gaili Cao

Solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) is a promising technology for CO₂ electrolysis and subsequent conversion to useful chemicals. This thesis combines the experimental development of new cathode materials with system-level simulation to enhance the performance of SOECs for CO2 electrolysis and assess their applicability for fuel production. There are two components to the work: (1) proposing nanoparticle decorated perovskites cathode material and (2) integration of DAC, SOEC and synfuel production and asses its performance with techno-economic and environmental analysis.

In the experimental section, the focus was on the cathode material of the SOEC since it is the limiting factor for CO₂ electrolysis.

Engineering a Synthetic Bacterial Consortium of Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas putida for Mixed Plastic Monomer Bioprocessing

Enhanced Air Filtration Media Using Sustainable
Materials

Optimal Integrated Decision-Making in Chemical Engineering:

MINLP Advances and Applications

The Effects of Temperature on Lithium-Ion Battery Cells and Packs

(POFs) as Separator Modifiers for Efficient Polysulfides Physiosorption in Lithium–Sulfur Batteries

Developing Conductive Polymers for Printed Temperature Sensor with High Sensitivity, Reproducibility, and Eco-Friendly Processability