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Biotechnology & Bioprocess: 224 3D models

Bioreactors and fermenters, purification and filtration, fill–finish, industrial fermentation and facilities (real sizes mL → 20,000 L). Each one is a ready-made 3D model you can turn, recolour and place in a figure — open BioDiorama and type its name in the Library search.

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Stirred-tank bioreactors · Airlift, column, fixed-bed & photobioreactors · Seed train, media & culture vessels · Impellers, spargers & agitator drives · Process sensors & probes · Hygienic valves, pumps & piping · Filtration & sterile filters · Centrifuges, homogenisers & harvest · Chromatography & purification · Crystallisation, drying & freezing · Fill–finish & packaging · Cold chain, storage & logistics · Brewing, dairy & industrial fermentation · Biogas, composting, algae & wastewater · Cultivated meat & food biotech · Cleanrooms, facility & process control · Clean utilities: WFI, clean steam & CIP · Cell therapy, vaccines & single-use connections · Bioprocess overview

Stirred-tank bioreactors 12

Benchtop glass bioreactor — A jacketed-glass stirred-tank bioreactor on its stand: steel head plate with pH, oxygen and temperature probes, a top-mounted motor, exhaust condenser and vent filter, and the controller with its acid, base and antifoam pumps. (≈ 1–10 L working volume (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Parallel mini-bioreactor system — An automated station running a dozen or more single-use micro-bioreactors side by side, each stirred, sparged and probed, with a pipetting gantry above for feeds and samples — used for clone selection and process development. (≈ 10–15 mL vessels; station ≈ 60 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Pilot-scale stainless bioreactor — A steam-sterilisable stainless bioreactor on a mobile skid: jacketed vessel with sight glass, side probes, top drive, valve cluster below and its own control cabinet with touch screen. (≈ 50–200 L, about 2.2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
2,000 L production bioreactor — A stainless production bioreactor with an insulated cooling jacket, top drive, manway and sight glasses, a belt of probes on the side, a valve cluster below and an access platform with ladder. (≈ 2,000 L working volume, about 5 m tall with its platform (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Stirred-tank bioreactor (cut-away) — A stirred tank cut open to show how it works: two impellers on the shaft, baffles on the wall, a ring sparger releasing bubbles, probes reaching into the broth and the cooling jacket — arrows show the circulation loops. (≈ 2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Single-use bioreactor (bag in a steel holder) — A disposable-bag bioreactor: a pre-sterilised plastic bag hangs inside a jacketed steel holder on load cells, stirred from below, with tubing, filters and probe ports on the bag and the controller tower beside it. (≈ 50–2,000 L; holder about 2.5 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Single-use bioreactor bag — The gamma-irradiated plastic bag that goes inside a single-use bioreactor: a cylinder of film with a moulded impeller at the bottom, sparger, probe ports, filter-capped vent lines and coiled tubing with aseptic connectors. (≈ 50–2,000 L bag, shown inflated (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Bioreactor head plate (from above) — The steel lid of a bench bioreactor seen from above, crowded with ports: the motor coupling in the centre, pH, oxygen and temperature probes, the sparger, feed and acid/base inlets, sampling and harvest dip tubes, the exhaust condenser and spare blanked ports. (≈ 20–30 cm plate (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Vessel jackets: dimple and half-pipe coil (cut-away) — A piece of vessel wall cut open to compare the two common heating–cooling jackets: a dimpled sheet spot-welded to the shell, and a half-pipe coil wound round it, both carrying glycol or steam. (≈ 1 m section (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Vessel manway with sight glass and lamp — The top of a process vessel close up: a round hinged manway clamped by swing bolts, a sight glass with its lamp beside it so operators can look in, a spray-ball port and a rupture disc. (≈ 50 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Retractable probe housing — An armature welded to a vessel that lets a pH or oxygen probe be pulled back out of the process into a flushing chamber — for cleaning, calibration or replacement — without opening the vessel. (≈ 50 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Spin filter for perfusion — A cylindrical stainless mesh basket that turns with the impeller shaft inside a perfusion bioreactor: spinning keeps cells from clogging the mesh, while spent medium is drawn out from inside the basket. (≈ 15 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))

Airlift, column, fixed-bed & photobioreactors 10

Airlift bioreactor (cut-away) — A tall column with an inner draught tube and no impeller: air sparged into the riser lifts the broth, which flows back down the annulus — gentle mixing for shear-sensitive cells and fungi. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Bubble-column bioreactor (glass) — A tall glass column with a porous sparger plate at the bottom: rising bubbles alone mix and aerate the culture. Simple and gentle, used for microalgae, plant cells and aerobic fermentations. (≈ 1.5 m tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
External-loop airlift bioreactor — Two columns joined top and bottom: gas sparged into the riser drives the broth up, the gas escapes in the head tank and the degassed liquid returns down the separate downcomer. (≈ 2.5 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Tubular photobioreactor — Rows of horizontal glass tubes stacked on a frame like a fence, full of green microalgae pumped round in a loop past a degassing tower — the tubes catch sunlight from both sides. (≈ 6 m long section (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Flat-panel photobioreactor — Thin upright panels of clear plastic full of microalgae, standing in rows; air bubbled in along the bottom of each panel mixes the culture and strips the oxygen it makes. (≈ 1.5 m tall panels (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Column photobioreactors with LED lighting — A row of clear, air-bubbled culture columns lit by a wall of LED panels — an indoor photobioreactor set for growing microalgae and cyanobacteria under controlled light. (≈ 2 m tall columns (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Fixed-bed (packed-bed) bioreactor — A bioreactor for adherent cells: a bed of small carrier strips packed in the middle gives a huge surface for the cells to grow on, while a bottom impeller circulates medium up through the bed and back as a falling film — used for viral vectors and vaccines. (≈ 40 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Fluidised-bed bioreactor — Medium pumped up through a column lifts and suspends a bed of small particles carrying immobilised cells or enzymes; a wider settling zone at the top lets the particles fall back while the liquid is recycled. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Solid-state fermentation tray chamber — A humidified chamber of perforated trays spread with moist grain or bran overgrown by mould — how koji, tempeh, enzymes and fungal spores are made without free liquid. (≈ 2 m tall chamber (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
ATF perfusion cell-retention device — An alternating tangential-flow unit for perfusion culture: a diaphragm pump at the base pulls broth from the bioreactor into a hollow-fibre filter and pushes it back, so cells stay in the bioreactor while spent medium passes out through the fibres. (≈ 1.2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Seed train, media & culture vessels 13

Seed train (scale-up from vial to production) — The steps of a cell-culture scale-up, left to right: a thawed cell-bank vial, shake flasks, a rocking-bag bioreactor, then ever larger bioreactors up to the production vessel — each one seeds the next. (from a 1 mL vial to a 2,000 L bioreactor (not to scale))
Media preparation tank — An open-topped stainless mixing tank with a hinged half-lid and a magnetic bottom-mounted mixer, standing on load cells so powders and water can be weighed in as medium or buffer is made up. (≈ 1,000 L, about 2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Single-use mixer (bag in a tote) — A square stainless tote on castors holding a disposable mixing bag, with a magnetically coupled impeller in the bag floor driven from below — for preparing media and buffers without cleaning. (≈ 200–1,000 L tote (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Baffled shake flask with vent cap — A plastic Erlenmeyer flask with moulded baffles in its base that break up the swirl on a shaker for better oxygen transfer, closed with a filtered vent cap. (≈ 250 mL – 3 L (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Multilayer cell-culture stack (cell factory) — Stacked flat trays joined by two corner tubes so medium spreads into every layer at once — scaled-up adherent cell culture for vaccines and cell therapies. (≈ 1–40 layers, each ≈ 30 × 20 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Roller bottles on a roller rack — Large bottles lying on slowly turning rollers so adherent cells on the inside wall are bathed in medium on every turn. (≈ 2 L bottles, rack ≈ 70 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Gas-permeable rapid-expansion flask — A squat culture vessel with a gas-permeable silicone membrane floor: oxygen reaches the cells from below, so a tall column of medium can feed T cells or other suspension cells for days without changes. (≈ 10 × 10 × 12 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Stacked shaking incubators — Large floor-standing incubator shakers stacked two high, their doors open to show trays of flasks clipped on platforms that swirl at controlled temperature and CO₂ — for seed cultures and microbial screening. (≈ 1.9 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Single-use 2D bioprocess bag — A flat pillow-shaped bag of multilayer film with welded ports, tubing lines closed by pinch clamps and connectors, used to store and move media, buffers and product. (≈ 1–50 L pillow bag (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Single-use 3D bag in a drum — A large cube-shaped bioprocess bag supported inside a rigid plastic drum on a dolly, its lines coiled on top — for holding and transporting bulk media, buffers and intermediates. (≈ 50–500 L (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Master cell bank vials in a cryobox — A cryobox of identical labelled vials from a master cell bank — each holding the same frozen cells from which every production run starts — lifted from the liquid-nitrogen freezer, frost on the lids. (≈ 13 cm box of 81 vials (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Glass carboy with fermentation airlock — A big glass bottle of fermenting wort, wine or cider topped by a water-filled airlock that lets carbon dioxide bubble out but keeps air and wild microbes from getting in, with yeast settled on the bottom. (≈ 20 L (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Single-use bioreactor suite (ballroom) — A modern open “ballroom” production room: a row of single-use bioreactors of increasing size with their controller towers, mobile tanks, tubing on carts and a high clean ceiling, all in one space because the closed bags keep the processes apart. (≈ 15 m room (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Impellers, spargers & agitator drives 12

Rushton turbine impeller — Six flat vertical blades on a disc — the classic radial-flow impeller that throws broth and gas outwards, breaking up bubbles in microbial fermenters. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Pitched-blade turbine impeller — Four flat blades set at 45° that push broth down (or up) the shaft as well as outwards — mixed axial and radial flow, common in cell-culture bioreactors. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Marine-propeller impeller — Three broad twisted blades like a boat propeller — a gentle, strongly axial pump for low-shear mixing of cell cultures and tanks. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Hydrofoil impeller — Three narrow, cambered, low-angle blades that pump a lot of liquid axially for little power and shear — used in large bioreactors and blend tanks. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Concave-blade (hollow-blade) turbine — A disc turbine whose six blades are curved half-pipes: it disperses gas like a Rushton but keeps its power much better when gassed. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Helical-ribbon impeller — Two helical ribbons sweeping close to the wall, held on struts — for very thick, viscous broths such as fungal or polysaccharide fermentations. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Anchor impeller — A U-shaped flat bar that follows the bottom and walls of the vessel, scraping heat-transfer surfaces in viscous mixing. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Sawtooth disperser (high-shear) disc — A spinning toothed disc that tears powders into liquid at high speed — for dissolving media powders and making dispersions, not for cells. (≈ 10 cm – 2 m across, depending on the vessel (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Ring sparger — A ring of tube drilled with small holes that sits below the bottom impeller and bubbles air or oxygen into the broth. (≈ 10–80 cm ring (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Sintered microsparger — A porous sintered-steel element that releases a cloud of very fine bubbles — far better oxygen transfer per litre of gas, used in high-density cell cultures. (≈ 2–10 cm element (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Bottom-mounted magnetic mixer — A magnetically coupled mixer welded into the bottom of a tank: the impeller spins on a post inside, driven through the steel by magnets on the motor outside, so there is no shaft seal to leak. (≈ 20 cm impeller (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Top-mounted agitator drive with mechanical seal — The drive that sits on a bioreactor lid: electric motor, gearbox, a lantern with the double mechanical seal that keeps the vessel sterile around the turning shaft, and the mounting flange. (≈ 1 m tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))

Process sensors & probes 13

Process probe (pH, oxygen, turbidity) — A sterilisable bioreactor probe on a Pg 13.5 thread with a screw-on cable head. Choose the type: a glass pH electrode with its thin glass bulb and gel-filled shaft; a stainless dissolved-oxygen probe with a membrane cap (polarographic) or dye spot (optical); or a wide optical-density probe with a slot at its tip where light crosses the broth. (≈ 12–42 cm insertion length, 12 mm across (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Temperature probe in a thermowell — A platinum resistance thermometer (Pt100) slid into a welded thermowell, with a round connection head and cable gland on top. (≈ 10–30 cm stem (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Biomass (capacitance) probe — A probe with four ring electrodes at its tip that measures the capacitance of the broth — only intact, living cells polarise, so it reads viable cell concentration online. (≈ 12–42 cm insertion length, 12 mm across (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Toroidal conductivity sensor — An electrodeless conductivity sensor: two coils sealed in a plastic ring induce and pick up a current in the liquid passing through the hole — used in buffers, CIP and chromatography. (≈ 3–5 cm sensor head (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Raman immersion probe with fibre-optic cable — A stainless immersion optic with a sapphire window at the tip, connected by armoured fibre-optic cable to a Raman analyser — it reads glucose, lactate and other nutrients in the broth without sampling. (≈ 20–40 cm probe (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Sanitary pressure transmitter — A pressure sensor with a flush stainless diaphragm on a tri-clamp connection (nothing for product to hide in), an electronics housing and a local display. (≈ 15 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Radar level sensor (horn antenna) — A non-contact level sensor that sits on a tank top: a horn antenna beams microwaves down and times the echo off the liquid surface. (≈ 25 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Tank weighing load cell module — A compression load cell between a base plate and a top plate, mounted under each leg of a tank so the control system knows exactly how much is inside. (≈ 15 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Coriolis mass flow meter — A flow meter whose bent measuring tubes are made to vibrate: liquid moving through them twists the tubes slightly, giving mass flow and density directly. (≈ 30–60 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Electromagnetic flow meter — A flow meter with no moving parts: a magnetic field across a lined tube makes a conductive liquid generate a voltage proportional to its speed, read by electrodes in the wall. (≈ 20–40 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Single-use optical sensor spot with fibre reader — A small dye spot glued inside a disposable bag or flask glows under blue light; a fibre-optic reader held outside the clear wall reads pH or oxygen from that glow without opening the vessel. (≈ 5 mm spot on a vessel wall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Off-gas analyser — A box that samples the gas leaving a bioreactor and measures its oxygen and carbon dioxide — from these come the oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide evolution rates and the respiratory quotient. (≈ 45 × 40 × 20 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
At-line cell-culture analyser — A benchtop analyser next to the bioreactor: a sample from the vessel is drawn up from a cup and measured for glucose, lactate, glutamine, ammonia, gases and cell count in a few minutes. (≈ 60 × 50 × 50 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))

Hygienic valves, pumps & piping 22

Diaphragm valve (hygienic) — The workhorse valve of sterile processing: a flexible diaphragm presses down on a weir inside the body, so the product only ever touches steel and the diaphragm. Turned by hand or opened by an air actuator. (≈ 10–30 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Diaphragm valve (cut-away) — A diaphragm valve opened up: the curved weir in the body, the white PTFE-faced diaphragm pressed onto it by the compressor and spindle, and the bonnet above. (≈ 15 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Multiport block valve cluster — Several diaphragm valves machined into one solid steel block, so a bioreactor outlet can be routed to harvest, drain or sampling with no dead legs where liquid could stagnate. (≈ 25 cm block (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Hygienic butterfly valve with trigger handle — A quarter-turn butterfly valve with tri-clamp ends and a squeeze-trigger handle that locks in open or closed notches — used on transfer lines and tank outlets. (≈ 10 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Double-seat (mix-proof) valve — A tall pneumatic valve with two seats and a leakage chamber between them, so two different liquids (product and cleaning solution) can flow in neighbouring pipes without any risk of mixing. (≈ 60 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Sterile sampling valve — A small aseptic valve welded to a vessel wall for taking samples: a plunger seals flush with the inside, and steam ports let the sample path be sterilised before and after each sample. (≈ 12 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Hygienic check valve — A spring-loaded non-return valve with tri-clamp ends: flow pushes the poppet off its seat, and any back-flow slams it shut. Shown cut open. (≈ 12 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Rupture disc in a hygienic holder — A thin domed metal disc clamped between tri-clamp ferrules on top of a pressure vessel: if pressure ever climbs too high it bursts open along scored lines and vents safely. (≈ 5–15 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Thermodynamic steam trap — A small valve at the low points of steam lines that lets condensate and air out but snaps shut against live steam — essential for clean steam-in-place. (≈ 8 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
In-line sight glass with light — A short glass tube in a stainless cage set into a pipe, with a lamp beside it, so operators can see what is flowing — product, foam or cleaning solution. (≈ 15 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Tri-clamp joint (exploded) — The hygienic connection used everywhere in bioprocessing, pulled apart: two flanged ferrules welded to the tube ends, the gasket that seals between them and the hinged clamp with its wing nut. (≈ 2.5–15 cm ferrules (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Hygienic tube fittings (elbow, tee, reducer, cap) — A set of polished stainless fittings with tri-clamp ends — a 90° elbow, an equal tee, a concentric reducer and a blind end cap — from which process piping is built. (≈ 2.5–10 cm tube (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Process piping on hangers — Orbital-welded stainless tubes running in parallel on ceiling hangers, sloped so they drain completely, with clamped joints, a branch down to a valve and coloured flow labels. (≈ 3 m run (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Flow transfer panel with U-bend jumpers — A wall panel of hygienic nozzles: moving a short U-bend jumper between two nozzles physically connects one line to another — a fool-proof way to route product, cleaning solution or steam. (≈ 1.2 × 1 m panel (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Hygienic centrifugal pump — A stainless centrifugal pump for liquids and cleaning solution: polished pump casing with tri-clamp inlet and outlet, the motor wrapped in a smooth stainless shroud, on adjustable legs for easy wash-down. (≈ 60 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Rotary lobe pump (cover off) — A positive-displacement pump with two meshing lobed rotors that carry liquid gently round the casing walls — kind to shear-sensitive and viscous products. Shown with the front cover removed. (≈ 80 cm long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Industrial hose (peristaltic) pump — A heavy-duty peristaltic pump: a thick reinforced hose lies round the inside of a round casing and shoes on a rotor squeeze it along, pushing slurries, cell broths or media without any seal touching the product. (≈ 1 m long (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Air-operated double-diaphragm pump — A pump driven by compressed air alone: two diaphragms in the round side chambers move in turn, with ball check valves in the manifolds above and below — moves drums of buffer, slurries and waste. (≈ 40 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Quaternary diaphragm pump (low-pulsation) — A compact pump with four diaphragm chambers working in sequence, giving a very smooth flow — used on chromatography and filtration skids, often with a single-use pump head. (≈ 30 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Magnetically levitated single-use pump — A disposable plastic pump head with a floating impeller held and spun by magnetic fields from the motor beneath — no bearings or seals, very gentle on cells. (≈ 15 cm pump head (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Braided transfer hose with tri-clamp ends — A flexible stainless-braid-covered PTFE hose with hygienic clamp ends, for temporary connections between tanks, skids and transfer panels. (≈ 1–3 m (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Pressure gauge with hygienic diaphragm seal — A dial pressure gauge separated from the process by a flush stainless diaphragm and a sealed fill fluid, so nothing can collect inside — fitted on vessels and steam lines. (≈ 10 cm dial (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))

Filtration & sterile filters 16

Sterilising-grade filter capsule (0.2 µm) — A single-use filter capsule with a pleated 0.2 µm membrane inside a clear housing: liquid in one end, sterile filtrate out the other, with vent valves on top to let air out. (≈ 10–25 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Pleated filter cartridge (cut-away) — A replaceable filter cartridge cut open: the membrane is folded into deep pleats around a perforated core, capped at both ends, with a bayonet adapter and O-rings that seal it into its housing. (≈ 25 cm (10 inch) cartridge (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Stainless cartridge filter housing (T-style) — A polished housing that holds one filter cartridge: the bowl clamps to a head with inlet and outlet, a vent valve on top and a drain below, standing on a tripod. (≈ 50 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Multi-round filter housing (open) — A large filter housing holding several cartridges side by side for high flow rates, shown with its domed lid swung open on its hinge and the swing bolts loosened. (≈ 1.2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Gas vent filter (disc capsule) — A small hydrophobic membrane filter on a vessel’s air line: lets gas in and out while keeping microbes and aerosols from passing either way. (≈ 5–8 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Lenticular depth-filter housing (cut-away) — A tall housing holding a stack of lens-shaped depth-filter cells — thick pads of cellulose and filter aid that trap cells and debris in their depth when clarifying a harvest. (≈ 1 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Pod depth-filter holder — Flat single-use depth-filter pods clamped side by side in a stainless holder, joined by manifolds — a scalable way to clarify cell-culture harvests before sterile filtration. (≈ 1 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Tangential-flow filtration cassette — A flat cassette of stacked ultrafiltration membranes and screens sealed in a gasketed frame: feed sweeps across the membranes, retaining protein while water and salts pass through — for concentrating and buffer exchange. (≈ 20 × 20 × 2 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
TFF cassette holder — A stainless holder that squeezes a stack of filtration cassettes between two thick end plates with tie rods and a torque nut, its manifolds carrying feed, retentate and permeate. (≈ 50 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Ultrafiltration / diafiltration (UF/DF) skid — A process skid for concentrating and buffer-exchanging a protein: a recirculation tank, a feed pump driving liquid across TFF cassettes in their holder, valves, flow meters and pressure gauges, run from a touch-screen cabinet. (≈ 2 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Virus-removal filter train — A pre-filter and a nanofilter capsule in series on a small stand: the nanofilter’s membrane has pores of about 20 nm, small enough to hold back viruses while the antibody passes through. (≈ 60 cm tall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Filter integrity tester — An instrument that checks a sterilising filter really is intact before and after use, by pressurising it with gas and measuring diffusion or the bubble point; here hooked up to a filter housing. (≈ 40 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Bottle-top vacuum filter unit — A disposable filter funnel screwed onto a media bottle: medium poured into the top is drawn through a 0.2 µm membrane by vacuum, so the bottle fills with sterile medium. (≈ 500 mL – 1 L (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Syringe filter on a syringe — A small disc filter with Luer fittings pushed onto a syringe — the quick way to sterilise or clarify a few millilitres of solution. (≈ 25 mm filter (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Membrane filter surface trapping bacteria (micro view) — A close-up of a sterilising membrane: a sponge-like polymer surface with pores of about 0.2 µm, and rod-shaped bacteria held on top because they are too large to pass. (≈ 10 µm patch of membrane)
Benchtop tangential-flow filtration setup — A lab-scale TFF run: a peristaltic pump drives protein solution from a stirred reservoir across a small cassette in its holder and back, with pressure gauges on feed and retentate and permeate dripping into a bottle on a balance. (≈ 60 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))

Centrifuges, homogenisers & harvest 7

Disc-stack centrifuge — A continuous high-speed separator that clarifies a cell-culture or fermentation harvest: broth fed in at the top is spun in a bowl full of conical discs, solids are thrown out and ejected, clear liquid leaves through the top. (≈ 1.6 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Disc-stack centrifuge bowl (cut-away) — The bowl of a disc-stack separator cut open: feed comes down the central tube, rises through holes in a stack of thin conical discs where solids slide outward to the solids space and are periodically ejected through ports, while the clarified liquid flows inward and up to the outlet. (≈ 60 cm bowl (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Centrifuge disc stack — The stack of thin stainless cones from inside a separator, with the spacer strips that keep a small gap between discs — each gap is a short settling channel, which is why the machine separates so well. (≈ 40–60 cm across (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Tubular-bowl centrifuge — A tall, narrow bowl hung from a drive at the top and spun very fast; feed enters at the bottom, solids pack against the wall and clear liquid leaves at the top — used for small, hard-to-settle particles. (≈ 1.6 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Decanter centrifuge (cut-away) — A horizontal centrifuge for thick slurries: a cylindrical–conical bowl spins with a screw conveyor inside turning slightly slower, which scrolls the settled solids up the cone and out while liquid overflows at the other end. (≈ 3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
High-pressure homogeniser — A piston pump that forces a cell suspension at up to 1,500 bar through a narrow adjustable valve gap — the sudden pressure drop and shear burst the cells open to release what they made. (≈ 1.3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Bead mill for cell disruption (cut-away) — A horizontal grinding chamber packed with tiny glass or ceramic beads stirred by discs on a fast shaft: yeast and fungal cells are crushed between the beads, and a screen at the outlet holds the beads back. (≈ 1 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Chromatography & purification 9

Process chromatography column — A large column for purifying proteins: a clear or steel tube packed with resin, closed by a top flow adaptor that is lowered onto the bed by a hydraulic or screw lift, standing on a wheeled base with valves for packing and unpacking. (≈ 45–100 cm wide, 1.6 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Chromatography column separating bands (cut-away) — A packed column cut open while it runs: the sample has split into coloured bands that move down the resin bed at different speeds, the fastest about to leave through the bed support at the bottom. (≈ 30 cm column (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Pre-packed single-use chromatography column — A column delivered already packed with resin and tested, in a plastic housing on its own base: connected, used for a campaign and thrown away, so there is no column packing in the plant. (≈ 20–80 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Process chromatography skid — A wheeled skid that runs a process column: buffer inlet valves, pumps, air trap, flow meter, pH, conductivity and UV detectors and a fraction outlet manifold, all driven from the cabinet’s touch screen. (≈ 2 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Benchtop chromatography system (FPLC) with fraction collector — A lab-scale liquid chromatography system for proteins: buffer bottles on top, pumps and valves in the front panel, a glass column clipped to the side, UV and conductivity monitors, and a fraction collector filling a rack of tubes. (≈ 60 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Membrane adsorber capsule — A disposable capsule holding stacked layers of charged membrane in place of beads: impurities such as DNA, host-cell proteins and viruses stick as the product flows straight through, at high speed. (≈ 15–40 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Continuous multi-column chromatography system — Several small columns on one valve manifold take turns loading, washing, eluting and regenerating, so the resin is used far more fully and product flows out continuously. (≈ 1.5 m wide (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Porous chromatography resin bead (cut-away) — One bead of chromatography resin cut in half: a sponge of agarose or polymer with wide pores running through it, giving a huge inner surface where ligands capture the target protein. (≈ 50–90 µm bead)
Buffer bags in totes — Single-use bags of prepared buffer waiting in their rigid totes on dollies, each with a filling line, an outlet line clamped shut and a label — lined up beside a purification suite. (≈ 200–1,000 L totes (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Crystallisation, drying & freezing 7

Jacketed crystalliser (cut-away) — A cooled, stirred vessel with a draught tube where a product such as insulin, an amino acid or an organic acid is crystallised out of solution — crystals grow in the circulating liquor and settle in the cone. (≈ 2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Spray dryer — A tall drying chamber with a cone bottom: liquid is atomised into a fine mist at the top and meets hot air, drying in seconds to a powder that is caught in the cyclone beside it; the exhaust passes a bag filter. (≈ 4 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Production freeze-dryer (lyophiliser) — A production freeze-dryer with its large door open: stacked temperature-controlled shelves loaded with trays of vials, which are frozen, then dried under vacuum while the ice is pulled off to the separate condenser; the shelves press the stoppers home at the end. (≈ 3 m tall chamber (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Freeze-drying shelf with vials (close-up) — Vials on a freeze-dryer shelf at the end of the cycle: each holds a dry white cake under a half-seated slotted stopper, and the shelf above is coming down to press the stoppers home. (≈ 2 mL vials on a shelf (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Fluid-bed dryer / granulator — A tall vessel in which warm air blown up through a perforated plate keeps powder or pellets floating like a boiling liquid while they dry or are sprayed with a coating; filter bags at the top keep the fines in. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Controlled-rate freezer — A chamber that cools cell-therapy bags and vials at an exact rate, such as 1 °C per minute, by injecting liquid nitrogen vapour — so cells freeze without being torn by ice; its lid lifts to load racks. (≈ 1 m wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Bulk drug substance in freeze–thaw bags — Purified drug substance frozen flat in single-use bags clipped into rigid protective shells, stacked on a rack ready for −70 °C storage or shipping. (≈ 2–20 L bags in protective shells (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))

Fill–finish & packaging 16

Vial, stopper and crimp cap (exploded) — The parts of an injectable vial pulled apart: the glass vial with its drug, the rubber stopper, and the aluminium crimp seal with its plastic flip-off cap. (≈ 2–20 mL vial (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Lyophilisation stopper (two-leg) — A rubber stopper with a slotted leg: half-pushed into the vial it leaves a gap for water vapour to escape during freeze-drying, then is pressed fully home by the shelves. (≈ 13–20 mm (1 unit ≈ 1 mm))
Aseptic vial filling station — The heart of a filling line: vials arrive on the conveyor, a star wheel indexes them under a row of filling needles fed from a sterile buffer tank, and they move on to be stoppered. (≈ 1.2 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Vial capping (crimping) station — After stoppering, each vial passes a capping head where an aluminium seal dropped from the chute is rolled tightly under the vial neck, locking the stopper in place. (≈ 1 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Aseptic filling isolator — A sealed, decontaminated enclosure around a filling line: operators reach in only through glove ports, filtered air flows down over the open vials, and materials enter through transfer ports — the cleanest way to fill sterile drugs. (≈ 3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Fill–finish line (washer to capper) — A whole aseptic vial line from left to right: the vial washer, the depyrogenation tunnel that heat-sterilises the glass, the filling and stoppering machine inside its isolator, and the capping machine. (≈ 10 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Automated visual inspection machine — Filled vials are spun and stopped in front of cameras and lights on a carousel, so particles moving in the liquid and cracks or cosmetic defects are spotted; rejects drop out to a separate tray. (≈ 2 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Manual inspection booth (black and white backgrounds) — A lit booth where trained inspectors swirl each filled container in front of a matt black panel (to see light particles) and a white panel (to see dark ones and fibres). (≈ 1 m wide booth (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Ready-to-fill syringe nest in a tub — Pre-sterilised glass syringes held upright in a plastic nest inside a sealed tub, its breathable lid peeled back — opened inside the isolator and fed straight to the filler. (≈ 26 × 23 cm tub (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Glass ampoule — A sealed all-glass container for injectable drugs: the neck has a constriction with a coloured break ring, so the top snaps off cleanly when opened. (≈ 1–10 mL (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Drug cartridge for a pen injector — A glass cartridge sealed by a crimped rubber septum at one end and a sliding plunger stopper at the other — loaded into insulin and other pen injectors. (≈ 3 mL cartridge (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
IV infusion bag — A flexible plastic bag of drug solution hung for infusion, with a hanging hole at the top and a spike port and injection port at the bottom. (≈ 100–1,000 mL (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Labelled vials packed in a carton — The end of the line: labelled, capped vials standing in a cardboard insert inside a folding carton with a printed serial code, ready for the cold chain. (≈ 10 vials, carton ≈ 12 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Rapid transfer port (alpha–beta docking) — The sealed doorway of an isolator: a sterile container with its own beta door docks onto the alpha door in the isolator wall, the two doors lock together and swing inward as one, so nothing from outside ever touches the inside. (≈ 30 cm door (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Vaporised hydrogen peroxide (VHP) decontamination unit — A wheeled generator that fills a sealed room or isolator with hydrogen-peroxide vapour to kill every microbe on the surfaces, then breaks the vapour down to water and oxygen; hoses connect it to the space. (≈ 1.2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Downflow dispensing booth — An open-fronted booth where raw-material powders are weighed: filtered air falls steadily from the ceiling and is drawn away at the back, protecting both the operator and the product, with a floor scale and a bench balance. (≈ 2 m wide (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Cold chain, storage & logistics 10

Insulated cold-chain shipper (cut-away) — A passive temperature-controlled shipper opened up: an outer carton, thick vacuum-insulated panels, conditioned coolant packs around the payload box of vials, and a data logger riding along. (≈ 40–60 cm box (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Dry-ice shipper — A thick polystyrene box in a carton for shipping frozen samples and drug substance at about −78 °C: racks of tubes nest in pellets of dry ice, with a vented lid and a hazard label. (≈ 50 cm box (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Temperature data logger — A small battery logger that rides inside a shipment and records the temperature every few minutes, showing at a glance whether the load stayed in range, and downloads its record over USB. (≈ 8 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Pallet of media bags — A wooden pallet stacked with boxed single-use bags of liquid cell-culture medium, stretch-wrapped and labelled, as it arrives at the warehouse. (≈ 1.2 × 1 m pallet (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Intermediate bulk container (IBC tote) — A white plastic tank in a galvanised steel cage on a pallet base, with a screw lid on top and a valve at the bottom — used for bulk media components, buffers, fermentation feedstocks and waste. (≈ 1,000 L, 1.2 m cube (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Drums of media powder — Fibre and plastic drums of dry media powder and chemicals with clamping-ring lids, one opened with its liner, waiting in a dispensing area. (≈ 200 L drums (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Pallet-sized cold-chain shipper — A passive insulated container the size of a pallet, with forklift slots and a hinged lid, holding cases of vaccine or biologics between 2 and 8 °C for several days in transit. (≈ 1.2 × 1 × 1.6 m (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Refrigerated shipping container (reefer) — A ribbed steel shipping container with its own refrigeration unit at one end, holding a load at a set temperature across sea and road legs of the cold chain. (≈ 12 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Vapour-phase liquid-nitrogen storage freezer — A large insulated tank that keeps cell banks and cell-therapy doses below −150 °C in nitrogen vapour: the lid swings open to a turntable of racks filled with boxes of vials, with the controller and fill hose on the side. (≈ 1.3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Warehouse racking with pallets — Tall pallet racking in a GMP warehouse holding raw materials and consumables on pallets, with labelled bay locations — where single-use bags, media and filters wait before use. (≈ 8 m long bay (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Brewing, dairy & industrial fermentation 18

Mash / lauter tun (cut-away) — The brewhouse vessel where crushed malt soaks in hot water so its enzymes turn starch into sugar; the grain bed rests on a slotted false bottom and rotating rakes loosen it as the sweet wort is run off. (≈ 2 m across (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Copper brew kettle — The vessel where wort is boiled with hops: a traditional copper-clad dome with its vapour chimney, manway door and sight glass, standing on a tiled brewhouse platform. (≈ 2.5 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Cylindroconical beer fermenter — The brewery’s standard fermenting tank: a tall cylinder with a 60° cone where yeast settles to be collected, glycol cooling jackets in bands, a racking arm, a pressure-relief and CIP assembly on top, standing on legs. (≈ 20–200 hL, about 4 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Brite (bright beer) tank — Where finished beer is conditioned, carbonated and held before packaging: a dish-bottomed pressure tank with a carbonation stone, a clear level tube up its side, sample valve and pressure gauge. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Cheese vat with curd knives — An open, jacketed double-O vat where milk is set with rennet and starter culture: rotating frames of wire knives cut the curd into cubes and then stir them as whey separates. (≈ 4 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Insulated milk silo — A tall outdoor stainless silo that stores raw or pasteurised milk at a dairy: insulated cladding, a side-entry agitator near the base, a manway, ladder and the valve room connection at its foot. (≈ 50,000 L, 12 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Fuel-ethanol fermenter — One of the huge carbon-steel tanks of a grain-ethanol plant where yeast ferments mashed corn for about two days: side-entry agitators near the base, an external cooling loop with heat exchanger, a CO₂ vent and a stair tower. (≈ 2 million L, 20 m across (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Ethanol distillation (beer) column — A tall column that strips ethanol from fermented beer: steam rises through stacked trays, vapour rich in alcohol goes overhead to the condenser and reflux drum, and spent stillage leaves at the bottom. Shown with a window cut to show the trays. (≈ 25 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Open-top wine fermenter with punch-down — Red grapes fermenting in an open stainless tank: carbon dioxide pushes the skins up into a thick cap that is punched down several times a day with a plunger to extract colour; oak barrels wait beside it for ageing. (≈ 2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Kombucha fermenting jar with SCOBY — Sweet tea fermenting in a glass jar under a cloth cover: the rubbery cellulose mat of bacteria and yeast (the SCOBY) floats on top, with brown yeast strands hanging below — a small-scale mixed-culture fermentation. (≈ 5 L jar (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Stainless beer keg with coupler — A pressurised stainless keg with its rolling rings and handle holes, and a coupler on the spear valve that lets gas in and beer out to the tap. (≈ 50 L keg (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Set-yoghurt cups in an incubation room — Trolleys of freshly filled yoghurt cups wheeled into a warm room at about 43 °C, where the lactic acid bacteria acidify the milk and set it in the pot before it is chilled. (≈ 1.2 m trolley (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Fermentation crock (sauerkraut, kimchi) — A stoneware crock with a water-sealed rim cut open to show shredded cabbage packed under its own brine and held down by weights — lactic acid bacteria sour it over weeks without air. (≈ 10 L crock (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Mushroom grow room (fruiting substrate bags) — Rows of shelves holding bags of pasteurised substrate colonised by fungal mycelium, with clusters of oyster mushrooms fruiting from slits in the bags under humid, misted air. (≈ 3 m of shelving (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Insect bioconversion crates (black soldier fly larvae) — Stacked plastic crates of food waste being eaten by black soldier fly larvae, which turn it into protein-rich larvae for animal feed and a compost-like frass. (≈ 60 cm crates (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Germination-and-kilning (malting) vessel — A slowly turning drum where steeped barley germinates in humidified air, switching on the enzymes brewers need, before being dried in the kiln — shown with a hatch open on the sprouting grain. (≈ 3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Cheese ripening room — Wheels of cheese ageing on wooden boards in a cool, humid room, where bacteria and moulds on and in each wheel slowly develop the flavour and rind over weeks to years. (≈ 3 m of shelving (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Silage clamp (forage fermentation) — Chopped grass or maize packed into a walled clamp and sealed under plastic sheet weighted with tyres: lactic acid bacteria ferment the sugars without air, pickling the forage so it keeps as winter cattle feed. (≈ 20 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Biogas, composting, algae & wastewater 20

Farm biogas digester with membrane gas holder — A round concrete anaerobic digester on a farm: manure and crop waste are stirred by submerged mixers while microbes turn them into methane-rich biogas, which collects under the inflated double-membrane roof and feeds an engine generator. (≈ 20 m across (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Egg-shaped sludge digesters — The striking egg-shaped tanks of a large wastewater plant, where sewage sludge is digested without air to make biogas — the shape keeps the contents mixed and stops grit and scum from collecting. (≈ 25 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Household biogas digester (fixed dome, cut-away) — A small underground digester for a family or farm: kitchen and animal waste go in the inlet, methane collects under the brick dome and is piped to a cooking stove, and digested slurry overflows into the outlet tank as fertiliser. (≈ 4–10 m³ (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Compost windrows with a turner — Long heaped rows of green waste composting in the open, steaming as microbes heat them to 60 °C or more; a straddle turner drives along a row to fluff and aerate it. (≈ 50 m rows (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
In-vessel rotating drum composter — A long, slowly turning drum that tumbles food and green waste with air blown through it, so composting happens fast, warm and enclosed; finished material drops out through a screen at the far end. (≈ 10 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Worm composting bin (cut-away) — A stacking worm bin opened up: kitchen scraps in the top tray, earthworms working through moist bedding below, rich castings in the bottom tray and a tap for draining the liquid. (≈ 60 cm bin (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Algae raceway pond with paddlewheel — A shallow oval channel of green microalgae culture kept circulating by a paddlewheel, with a centre wall dividing the loop — the cheapest way to grow algae outdoors for feed, pigments and biofuel research. (≈ 50 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Activated-sludge aeration tank (cut-away) — The biological heart of a sewage works: wastewater mixed with flocs of bacteria (activated sludge) in a deep concrete tank, kept bubbling by a grid of fine-bubble diffusers on the floor so the microbes can eat the dissolved pollution. (≈ 30 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Circular clarifier with rotating bridge — A wide round settling tank: water enters at the centre, sludge settles to the sloping floor and is scraped to the middle by arms on a slowly turning bridge, while clear water spills over the V-notch weir at the rim. (≈ 30 m across (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Trickling filter (biofilter) — A round bed of stones or plastic media with a biofilm of microbes growing on it; rotating spray arms trickle settled sewage over the bed and the microbes feed on it as it runs down through the gaps. (≈ 20 m across (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Membrane bioreactor (MBR) cassette — A frame of hanging hollow-fibre or flat-sheet membranes lowered into the aeration tank: clean water is sucked through the membranes while air scours them, replacing the settling tank and giving very clear effluent. (≈ 2 m tall module (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
UASB anaerobic reactor (cut-away) — An upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor: wastewater pumped in at the bottom rises through a dense bed of granular sludge whose microbes turn organic matter into biogas; a three-phase separator at the top lets gas, water and granules part ways. (≈ 6 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Bioremediation biopile — A heap of oil-contaminated soil on a lined pad, with perforated pipes running through it that pull air in, so native microbes (helped by added nutrients and moisture) break the hydrocarbons down over months. (≈ 20 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Constructed wetland (reed bed, cut-away) — A shallow lined bed of gravel planted with reeds: wastewater flows slowly through the gravel below the surface while microbes on the roots and stones clean it — a low-energy treatment for small communities. (≈ 15 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Septic tank (cut-away) — A buried two-chamber tank for a house: solids settle as sludge and are slowly digested by anaerobic bacteria, grease floats as scum, and the clarified liquid flows on through a baffle tee to the drain field. (≈ 3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Belt filter press (sludge dewatering) — A machine that squeezes water out of digested sludge: the sludge, thickened with polymer, is spread on a moving filter belt, drained by gravity, then pressed between two belts winding round a series of rollers until it leaves as a firm cake. (≈ 3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Microbial fuel cell — A two-chamber cell where bacteria growing as a biofilm on the anode eat organic matter and pass electrons into the electrode; they travel through the wire and a small load to the cathode, while protons cross the membrane between the chambers. (≈ 20 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Bioleaching heap with irrigation — A terraced heap of crushed low-grade copper ore on a lined pad, sprinkled with acidic solution: iron- and sulphur-oxidising bacteria living in the heap release the metal, and the blue copper-rich solution drains to a collection pond. (≈ 100 m heap (1 unit ≈ 10 m))
Seaweed (kelp) longline farm — Ropes held just under the sea surface by rows of buoys and anchored at each end, with long blades of kelp growing down from them — farmed for food, alginate and bioproducts. (≈ 50 m lines (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Moving-bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) — A tank of wastewater kept tumbling by aeration, full of small plastic carriers shaped like little wheels: bacteria grow as a protected biofilm inside each carrier, packing far more microbes into the tank; a sieve at the outlet keeps the carriers in. (≈ 4 m tank (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Cultivated meat & food biotech 3

Cultivated-meat bioreactor (cut-away) — A large, gently stirred bioreactor growing animal muscle and fat cells for food: the cells cling to edible microcarrier beads suspended in a pink, serum-free medium; a harvest line leads to a tray of cell biomass. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Cultivated meat on an edible scaffold — A piece of cultivated meat cut open: aligned muscle fibres grown along the channels of a porous plant-protein scaffold, with small clusters of cultured fat cells marbled between them. (≈ 5 cm piece (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Frozen starter-culture pellets — Concentrated lactic acid bacteria frozen as small pellets in a foil pouch, ready to be tipped straight into a vat of milk to start yoghurt or cheese fermentation. (≈ 500 g pouch (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))

Cleanrooms, facility & process control 13

GMP cleanroom suite (cut-away) — A grade B/C processing cleanroom opened like a doll’s house: smooth panel walls with coved corners, a walk-on ceiling of HEPA filter units, low-level air returns, a pass box, a vision panel to the corridor, and a bioreactor and safety cabinet inside. (≈ 8 × 6 m room (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Airlock and gowning room — The way into a cleanroom: a gowning room with a step-over bench, lockers and a rack of sterile coveralls, then an airlock whose two doors are interlocked so they never open together, with a pressure gauge showing the cascade. (≈ 6 × 3 m (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
HEPA fan filter unit — A ceiling module with its own fan pushing room air through a pleated HEPA filter behind a perforated diffuser face, giving the steady downward clean air of a cleanroom — shown tilted up to see the filter face. (≈ 1.2 × 0.6 m module (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Cleanroom pass box (pass-through hatch) — A small stainless hatch through a cleanroom wall with interlocked doors on each side, a UV lamp and indicator lights, so materials pass between rooms without people going through. (≈ 60 cm cube in a wall (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Cleanroom air shower — A stainless booth at a cleanroom entrance: people stand inside for a few seconds while rows of nozzles blast filtered air at them to blow loose particles off their gowns before the inner door unlocks. (≈ 1 × 1 × 2.2 m booth (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Process-control (SCADA) screen — An operator screen showing a live process picture of a bioreactor: the vessel, pumps and valves as symbols with green and grey states, set points and readings beside them, and trend lines below. (≈ 60 cm display (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Plant control room — A curved operator desk facing a wall of large screens showing process pictures, trends and alarms for the whole facility, with keyboards, phones and a chair. (≈ 5 m desk (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Portable airborne particle counter — An instrument wheeled round a cleanroom that draws in a fixed volume of air through its isokinetic probe and counts particles of 0.5 and 5 µm with a laser, to prove the room meets its grade. (≈ 30 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Microbial air sampler with settle plate — An impaction air sampler that pulls a set volume of cleanroom air through a perforated head onto an agar plate, beside an open settle plate — both are incubated and the colonies counted. (≈ 25 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Room differential-pressure gauge — A wall-mounted gauge beside a cleanroom door showing how many pascals the room is above its neighbour, so clean air always flows outwards through gaps — with the acceptable band marked in green. (≈ 12 cm dial (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Double-door pass-through steam steriliser — A large steam autoclave built through a cleanroom wall: loads go in on a trolley from the dirty side and come out sterile on the clean side, the two doors never open at once. (≈ 2 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Sterile cleanroom coverall on a hanger — The one-piece hooded coverall worn in aseptic areas, with integrated hood and elasticated cuffs, hung up beside its goggles, mask and overboots. (≈ 1.6 m (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Modular cleanroom pod — A prefabricated, self-contained cleanroom unit with its own air handling on the roof, delivered to site and wheeled into a grey warehouse space — a fast, flexible way to add a cell-therapy or vaccine suite. (≈ 4 × 9 m pod (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Clean utilities: WFI, clean steam & CIP 12

Clean steam generator — A skid that boils purified water into clean, pyrogen-free steam for sterilising vessels and lines in place: an evaporator heated by plant steam, a tall separator column that strips out droplets, and its controls. (≈ 2.5 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Multiple-effect WFI still — A distillation unit making Water for Injection: a row of tall columns where purified water is evaporated in stages, each column’s steam heating the next, and the condensed distillate is free of pyrogens and microbes. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
WFI storage tank and distribution loop — Water for Injection is stored hot in an insulated tank with a spray ball and vent filter, and pumped continuously round a sloped stainless loop past each use point — moving water stays sterile. (≈ 3 m tall tank (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Purified-water system (reverse osmosis and EDI) — The skid that turns mains water into purified water: softener and carbon vessels, a cartridge pre-filter, a high-pressure pump, horizontal reverse-osmosis membrane housings and an electrodeionisation stack, with conductivity monitors. (≈ 3 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Clean-in-place (CIP) skid — A skid that cleans tanks and pipework without taking them apart: tanks of hot water, caustic and acid, a supply pump, heat exchanger and conductivity probe send cleaning solutions round the plant and the return is checked before rinsing. (≈ 2.5 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
CIP spray ball and rotary jet head — The two kinds of tank-cleaning device: a fixed spray ball drilled with holes that splashes the whole inside of a vessel, and a rotary jet head whose nozzles turn on two axes to blast the walls with high-impact jets. (≈ 5–10 cm heads (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Plate heat exchanger — A pack of thin corrugated steel plates squeezed between a fixed and a moving frame plate by long bolts: hot and cold liquids flow in alternate gaps, so heat passes quickly through the plates — used to pasteurise, cool wort and heat CIP solutions. (≈ 1.5 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Temperature control unit (jacket heater–chiller) — A wheeled unit that pumps a heating–cooling fluid through a bioreactor’s jacket and adjusts it continuously to hold the broth at exactly the set temperature. (≈ 1 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Biowaste kill (effluent decontamination) tank — A heated pressure tank where liquid waste from a containment facility is held at high temperature until every organism is dead, before it is cooled and released to drain. (≈ 3 m tall (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Bioreactor gas mass-flow panel — The panel that mixes air, oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide for a bioreactor: inlet regulators and gauges, solenoid valves and digital mass-flow controllers, out through a sterile filter to the sparger and overlay. (≈ 60 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Air-handling unit for a cleanroom — The big box on the plant-room floor that conditions cleanroom air: intake dampers, bag pre-filters, cooling and heating coils, a humidifier and a large fan, with ducts to the terminal HEPA filters. (≈ 8 m long (1 unit ≈ 1 m))
Wash-down hose station and hygienic floor drain — A wall-mounted steam-and-water mixing station with a hose reel and spray gun for cleaning process areas, above a stainless trapped floor drain with a removable grating. (≈ 1.5 m (1 unit ≈ 1 m))

Cell therapy, vaccines & single-use connections 9

Closed automated cell-processing system — A benchtop machine that carries out a whole cell-therapy process in one sterile disposable kit: separating, washing, activating, transducing and expanding a patient’s cells in a spinning centrifuge chamber, with bags hung on top and tubing routed through valves. (≈ 70 cm wide (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Cryobag in a metal cassette — A frozen bag of cell therapy, flat and labelled with the patient’s identity, held in a protective aluminium cassette that is stored in the vapour above liquid nitrogen and shipped in a dry shipper. (≈ 20 × 12 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Sterile tube welder — A device that joins two thermoplastic tubes without opening them: a hot disposable wafer cuts through both clamped tubes, they are shifted into line and fused — a sterile connection between two closed bags. (≈ 30 cm (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Hand-held tube sealer — A pistol-grip sealer whose heated jaws melt a thermoplastic tube flat and seal it shut, so a filled bag can be disconnected without opening the system. (≈ 25 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Aseptic connectors (genderless) — Two halves of a single-use sterile connector on the ends of tubing: each carries a peel-off membrane; pressed together and the membranes pulled out, they lock into a sterile fluid path even outside a cleanroom. (≈ 5 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Single-use bag manifold — A pre-sterilised assembly of flat 2D bags joined by a tubing manifold with Y-pieces, pinch clamps and an aseptic connector — used to dispense a filtered bulk into several bags in a closed system. (≈ 1 m assembly (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))
Magnetic cell-separation column — Cells labelled with tiny magnetic beads are run through a column packed with steel matrix sitting in a strong magnet: labelled cells stick, the rest flow through to the tube below, then the column is removed and the wanted cells flushed out. (≈ 15 cm (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Egg-based vaccine production (inoculating eggs) — Fertilised hens’ eggs on a tray being injected with seed virus through a small hole in the shell, one needle per egg; after a few days’ incubation the virus-rich fluid is harvested — still how most flu vaccine is made. (≈ 30 eggs on a tray (1 unit ≈ 1 cm))
Vacuum infiltration of tobacco plants (molecular farming) — Young Nicotiana benthamiana plants hung upside down so their leaves dip into a tank of Agrobacterium suspension; pulling a vacuum and releasing it floods the leaves with bacteria that make them produce a vaccine or antibody within days. (≈ 1.5 m chamber (1 unit ≈ 10 cm))

Bioprocess overview 2

Biomanufacturing process train (model) — A miniature of a complete biologics plant from left to right: media prep, seed and production bioreactors, centrifuge harvest, depth filtration, chromatography, virus filtration, UF/DF and sterile filling, linked by arrows. (a whole antibody process as a table-top model (not to scale))
Batch, fed-batch and perfusion (side by side) — The three ways to run a culture, shown on three vessels: batch (everything in at the start), fed-batch (concentrated feed added over time, so the volume rises) and perfusion (fresh medium in and spent medium out continuously, cells held back by a filter). (three bench bioreactors (not to scale))