Bioreactor carrier gel prepared from a crosslinked N-vinylcarboxamide resin

摘要

A bioreactor carrier is provided composed of a water absorption gel of a crosslinked N-vinylcarboxamide resin which has a great moisture content and excellent physical strength, is not eroded by microorganisms and is easily mass-produced on an industrial scale. The gel is obtained by swelling and gelling a crosslinked N-vinylcarboxamide resin made from an N-vinylcarboxamide such as N-vinylacetoamide. The swollen gel may be in the form of beads of 1.0 to 20 mm, and the resin when swollen with water has a water absorption coefficient of 500 to 3500%. Resin beads may be swollen in a suspension of a biocatalyst such as animal cells, plant cells, microorganisms or protozoans to bind and immobilize the biocatalyst to form a bioreactor. The microorganisms can be nitrate bacteria, denitrification bacteria or Hyphomycetes, and the bioreactor may be used to treat waste water or for deodorizing. The crosslinked N-vinylcarboxamide resin contains a repeating unit shown by formula (A) below crosslinked with a crosslinking agent. wherein R1 and R2 represent independently a hydrogen atom or a methyl group.