Bioprocess Enginnering goes RPTU-Zero

On June 12, 2024, 13 students participating in the RPTU-Zero program gained a comprehensive insight into bioprocess engineering. The workshop, themed "Microorganisms - the natural tools of biotechnology" offered an exciting mix of theory and practice.

The participants learnt about the technical benefits of fungi, bacteria and algae and found out about the important role microorganisms play in everyday life. A particular highlight was the creation of a microbial fingerprint: the students took their own microflora home on agar plates to observe the growth of the microorganisms.

Another impressive topic was the cultivation of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which has been used in bread and beer production for thousands of years. Through their own experiments, the students investigated the optimal growth conditions for this sugar fungus. They determined the best growth temperature, the required quantities of sugar, salt and water and realised that yeast cannot be fobbed off with sweetener or lactose. The knowledge gained will certainly be of use to some people when baking pizzas in the future.

The participants were also fascinated by the diverse potential of algae and cyanobacteria in the areas of the environment, climate, pharmacy, agriculture, wastewater management, the food industry and biofuels. They explored one of these applications themselves by extracting a range of colored solutions from microalgae, macroalgae, and cyanobacteria, whereby the blue of the microalgae spirulina, known from smurf ice, was particularly eye-catching.

At the end of the workshop, former BCI students talked about their time at RPTU and shared useful information about studying BCI. We hope that we were able to generate enthusiasm for the varied BCI study programme with this event and are looking forward to welcoming some of the participants as BCI students next semester.

Are you interested in the BCI degree programme? You can find all the information here (only available in German)!