Visando ampliar as rotas de produção de biodiesel, o objetivo deste trabalho foi utilizar uma tecnologia alternativa para a produção de biodiesel por via enzimática. Neste processo, células do fungo Mucor circinelloides URM 4182 foram cultivadas em meio apropriado, imobilizadas in situ em espuma de poliuretano e utilizadas diretamente como biocatalisador na síntese de ésteres de ácidos graxos em reações de transesterificação do óleo de coco usando etanol como agente acilante. O trabalho experimental foi desenvolvido em 4 etapas. Inicialmente, as propriedades bioquímicas do biocatalisador foram determinadas, incluindo valores ótimos de pH (7,3) e temperatura (40° C) e constantes cinéticas (Vmax= 610 U/g e Km= 263 mM). Na segunda etapa foram realizados testes utilizando reatores de tanque agitados operados em regime descontínuo confirmando a eficiência do M. circinelloides UMR 4182 para converter os ácidos graxos presentes no óleo de coco em ésteres correspondentes (rendimento de transesterificação da ordem de 96% em 144 horas). Com objetivo de aumentar a produtividade do sistema, na terceira etapa, estudos foram conduzidos em reator de leito fixo operando em fluxo contínuo empregando dois reatores (A e B) com diferentes relações geométricas altura/diâmetro (l/d=4,2 e l/d=14). Avaliou-se inicialmente no reator A o comportamento do sistema para substratos preparados em diferentes razões molares (1:6, 1:8 e 1:10 óleo/álcool). Comparativamente os rendimentos mais elevados (da ordem de 62%) foram obtidos para substratos preparados na razão molar de 1:8 (óleo/álcool), indicando a necessidade de investigar outros parâmetros do processo. A presença de caminhos preferenciais detectada visualmente no reator A pela injeção do corante lipossolúvel indicou limitações de transferência de massa, justificando a baixa conversão em ésteres de etila. Em seguida, mediante a avaliação da geometria dos reatores, foi selecionado o reator B (volume útil - 286 mL) para determinar a influencia do tempo espacial (60, 70 e 80 horas) no desempenho do processo utilizando a condição pré-estabelecida, etanol em excesso na razão molar 1:8 (óleo/etanol). O melhor desempenho do reator foi constatado para tempo espacial de 80h (vazão volumétrica = 0,06 mL.min-1). Nessa condição, 92,7 ??1,5% dos ácidos graxos presentes no óleo de coco foram convertidos nos ésteres de etila correspondentes, alcançando uma produtividade média de 51,0 ??1,4 mgéster.g-1meio.h-1 e fornecendo uma operação estável do sistema por 25 dias. As amostras purificadas apresentaram valores de viscosidade 5,14 mm2/s e teores residuais de monoglicerídeos (3,2 m/m%) e diglicerídeos (3,4 m/m%). Na quarta etapa foram realizados testes em reatores agitados operados em regime descontínuo na presença de solvente (terc-butanol e/ou líquido iônico), em diferentes proporções (10 - 50%). Os resultados foram comparados com a reação conduzida na ausência de solvente que apresentou baixa velocidade de reação e rendimento reduzido (44,5% em 6 dias de reação). Ambos os solventes aumentaram as conversões e velocidades de reação; no entanto, terc-butanol apresentou melhor desempenho em menor proporção (15%). Nessa condição, rendimentos da ordem de 96% foram alcançados em 96 horas, provavelmente devido à polaridade moderada e baixa viscosidade deste solvente que dilui o glicerol acumulado no suporte e melhora a transferência do substrato para o interior das células imobilizadas, impedindo a inibição da enzima por limitação da transferência de massa. De forma geral, os resultados foram promissores e demonstraram a potencialidade das células íntegras de M. circinelloides URM 4182 imobilizada em poliuretano para mediar a síntese de biodiesel em um reator de leito fixo em fluxo contínuo. / Aiming at expanding routes for biodiesel production, the goal of this work was to use an alternative technology for the production of biodiesel by enzymatic route. In this case, whole-cells from filamentous fungus Mucor circinelloides URM 4182 were growth in appropriate medium, simultaneously immobilized on low-cost support and used directly as a biocatalyst in the transesterification reactions of coconut oil using ethanol as the acylating agent. The experimental work was carried out in four steps. Initially, the biochemical properties of the immobilized biocatalyst were determined, including values for optimum pH (7.3) and temperature (40 °C) and kinetics parameters (Vmax 610 U/g and Km= 263 mM). Following this, tests were carried out in stirred batch reactors confirming the efficiency of M. circinelloides URM 4182 to produce biodiesel from coconut oil (96% in 144 hours). However, the low productivity attained motivated the replacement of the batch system for packed bed reactor operating under continuous flow using two reactor (A and B) having different geometric relations height/diameter (l/d = 4.2 and l/d = 14). Initially, the performance of the reactor A was assessed for substrates at different molar ratios (1:6, 1:8 and 1:10 oil/alcohol). Comparatively the best conversion (62%) was achieved for substrate at molar ratio of 1:8 (oil/alcohol); suggesting the need to investigate other process parameters to overcome such limitations. The presence of preferential paths visual detected for Reactor A by tracer assay indicated severe mass transfer limitations, justifying the low conversion attained in ethyl esters. Following this, Reactor B was selected to run the continuous experiments using substrate at pre-established condition (molar ratio oil/ethanol 1: 8) under different space times (60, 70, and 80 hours). Better reactor performance was found for space time of 80 h (volumetric flow = 0.06 mL min-1). In this condition, 92.7±1.5% of the fatty acids present in the coconut oil have been converted into the corresponding ethyl esters, reaching an average volumetric productivity of 51.0 ??1.4 mgester.g-1medium.h-1 with no significant reduction in the efficiency during 25 days. The purified samples presented values of 5.14 viscosity mm2/s and residual levels of monoglycerides (3.2 wt %) and diglycerides (3.4 wt%). In the fourth step, transesterification reactions were performed in stirred tank reactors in the presence of solvent (tert-butanol and/or Ionic Liquid) at different proportions (10-50%) in relation to the total weight oil and ethanol. The results were compared with the reaction carried out in the absence of solvent which has low reaction rate and reduced yield (44.5% in 6 days of reaction). Both solvents enhanced the transesterification yields and reaction rates; however tert-butanol showed better performance at lower proportion (15%). Under this condition, yields in the order of 96% were attained in 96 hours, probably due to the moderate polarity and lower viscosity of this solvent which dilutes the glycerol accumulated in support and improved the substrate transfer into the interior of the immobilized cells by preventing the enzyme inhibition by limitation of the mass transfer. Overall, the results were promising and showed the potential of whole-cells from M. circinelloides URM 4182 immobilized in polyurethane to mediate the synthesis of biodiesel in a continuous packed bed reactor.

An External Loop Airlift Bioreactor with a small amount (99% porosity) of stainless steel mesh packing inserted in the riser section was used for bioremediation of a phenol polluted air stream. The packing enhanced VOC and oxygen mass transfer rates and provided a large surface area for cell immobilization. Using a pure strain of Pseudomonas putida, fed-batch and continuous runs at three different dilution rates were completed with phenol in the polluted air as the only source of growth substrate. 100% phenol removal was achieved at phenol loading rates up to 33120 mg/h.m3 using only one third of the column, superior to any previously reported biodegradation rates of phenol polluted air with 100% efficiency. A mathematical model has been developed and is shown to accurately predict the transient and steady state data.

Many industrial activities discharge sulphate- and metal-containing wastewaters, including the manufacture of pulp and paper, mining and mineral processing, and petrochemical industries. Acid mine drainage (AMD) is an example of such sulphate- and metal-containing waste streams. Formation of AMD is generally the result of uncontrolled oxidation of the sulphide minerals present in the terrain in which the drainage flows with concomitant leaching of the metals. Acid mine drainage (AMD) and other sulphate- and metal-containing waste streams are amenable to active biological treatment. Anaerobic reduction of sulphate, reaction of produced sulphide with metal ions present in the waste stream, and biooxidation of excess sulphide are three main sub-processes involved in the active biotreatment of AMD. Anaerobic reduction of sulphate can be achieved in continuous stirred tank bioreactors with freely suspended cells or in immobilized cell bioreactors. The application of freely suspended cells in a continuous system dictates a high residence time to prevent cell wash-out, unless a biomass recycle stream is used. In an immobilized cell system biomass residence time becomes uncoupled from the hydraulic residence time, thus operation of bioreactor at shorter residence times becomes possible. In the present work, kinetics of anaerobic sulphate reduction was studied in continuous immobilized cell packed-bed bioreactors. Effects of carrier matrix, concentration of sulphate in the feed and sulphate volumetric loading rate on the performance of the bioreactor were investigated. The bioreactor performance, in terms of sulphate reduction rate, was dependent on the nature of the carrier matrix, specifically the total surface area which was provided by the matrix for the establishment of biofilm. Among the three tested carrier matrices, sand displayed the superior performance and the maximum volumetric reduction rate of 1.7 g/L-h was achieved at the shortest residence time of 0.5 h. This volumetric reduction rate was 40 and 8 folds faster than the volumetric reduction rates obtained with glass beads (0.04 g/L-h; residence time: 28.6 h) and foam BSP (0.2 g/L-h; residence time: 5.3 h), respectively. Further kinetic studies with sand as a carrier matrix indicated that the extent of volumetric reduction rate was dependent on the feed sulphate concentration and volumetric loading rate. At a constant feed sulphate concentration, increases in volumetric loading rate caused the volumetric reduction rate to pass through a maximum, while increases in feed sulphate concentrations from 1.0 g/L to 5.0 g/L led to lower volumetric reduction rates. The maximum volumetric reduction rates achieved in the bioreactors fed with initial sulphate concentration of 1.0, 2.5 and 5.0 g/L were 1.71, 0.82 and 0.68 g/L-h, respectively. The coupling of lactate utilization to sulphate reduction was observed in all experimental runs and the rates calculated based on the experimental data were in close agreement with calculated theoretical rates, using the stoichiometry of the reactions involved. The maximum volumetric reduction rates achieved in the immobilized cell bioreactors were significantly faster than those reported for freely suspended cells employed in the stirred tank bioreactors.

Podophyllotoxin is a natural medicine possessing an outstanding anti-tumour activity. It can be extracted from the rhizome of Podophillum peltatum (American Podophyllum). Volumetric heating of a packed bed of particles including solvent during the extraction can eliminate the solvent pre-heating time and provide uniform and quick heating of the bed. RF-assisted extraction has a potential to be a promising extraction alternative over conventional methods. The characterization and assessment of RF-assisted extraction of podophyllotoxin is crucial. Thermal properties including specific heat capacity, thermal conductivity, and thermal diffusivity of a packed bed of P. peltatum with and without ethanol solutions were determined and the associated multiples regression equations were obtained for the purpose of thermal analysis of RF-assisted packed bed extraction process and related modeling investigations.<p> The dielectric properties of the packed bed of rhizome particles were measured from 10 to 30 MHz using a precision LCR meter and a liquid test fixture. The effects of temperature, particle moisture content, volumetric concentration of ethanol and bed porosity on the dielectric constant, dielectric loss factor and power penetration depth were investigated. The dielectric loss factor significantly increased with the particle moisture content for the beds with 100% and 70% ethanol but not with 30% ethanol. The dielectric loss factor was proportional to temperature directly and to frequency inversely. With 30% ethanol (and therefore 70% water), the dielectric loss factor of the bed dramatically increased compared to 70% and 100% ethanol. Porosity had a significant effect on the dielectric constant but not on the dielectric loss factor. The power penetration depth of a packed bed with 100% ethanol was significantly larger than those of the packed bed with 30% and 70% ethanol. Empirical regression equations were developed for simulation and design of an RF-assisted packed bed extraction of podophyllotoxin.<p> A RF-transparent batch reactor was made of glass filled Teflon and the extraction kinetics of podophyllotoxin was characterized. The effects of temperature, ethanol volumetric concentration, solid/liquid ratio, RF heating and particle moisture content on the extraction rate and yield of podophyllotoxin were investigated at different extraction conditions. A generalized diffusion mathematical model taking into account three major particle geometries was developed and coupled with genetic algorithm for determination of effective diffusivity and partition coefficient through an inverse simulation approach. The approach was first verified by reported experimental data of andrographolide extraction followed by determining the effective diffusivity and partition coefficient of podophyllotoxin for different conditions. The optimum batch extraction condition was achieved with 30% ethanol-water solution at 53¢XC. A prototype was developed for RF-assisted extraction of podophyllotoxin using two optical and RF-transparent reactors with horizontal and vertical orientations. Applying the optimum conditions obtained from batch experiments, the potential of RF heating for providing a uniform temperature in the packed bed was evaluated. The effect of solvent dielectric loss factor on uniform RF heating was investigated and the chemical effect of NaCl used for increasing dielectric loss factor of the solvent on podophyllotoxin was assessed. The horizontal packed bed demonstrated a large temperature gradient across the thickness of the bed during RF heating; however, a uniform RF heating was achieved when the vertical packed bed reactor was used for RF-assisted extraction of podophyllotoxin. The concentration of 2.5 g NaCl/L of the solvent at the temperature controller set point of 40aC provided a relatively good uniform temperature of 50aC within the bed. Evaluating three flow rates of 130, 160 and 200 ml/min for the solvent of 30% ethanol with 2.5 g NaCl/L indicated that the flow rate of 160 ml/min could provide better temperature overlap of four positions of the bed height.

Many industrial activities discharge sulphate- and metal-containing wastewaters, including the manufacture of pulp and paper, mining and mineral processing, and petrochemical industries. Acid mine drainage (AMD) is an example of such sulphate- and metal-containing waste streams. Formation of AMD is generally the result of uncontrolled oxidation of the sulphide minerals present in the terrain in which the drainage flows with concomitant leaching of the metals. Acid mine drainage (AMD) and other sulphate- and metal-containing waste streams are amenable to active biological treatment. Anaerobic reduction of sulphate, reaction of produced sulphide with metal ions present in the waste stream, and biooxidation of excess sulphide are three main sub-processes involved in the active biotreatment of AMD. Anaerobic reduction of sulphate can be achieved in continuous stirred tank bioreactors with freely suspended cells or in immobilized cell bioreactors. The application of freely suspended cells in a continuous system dictates a high residence time to prevent cell wash-out, unless a biomass recycle stream is used. In an immobilized cell system biomass residence time becomes uncoupled from the hydraulic residence time, thus operation of bioreactor at shorter residence times becomes possible. In the present work, kinetics of anaerobic sulphate reduction was studied in continuous immobilized cell packed-bed bioreactors. Effects of carrier matrix, concentration of sulphate in the feed and sulphate volumetric loading rate on the performance of the bioreactor were investigated. The bioreactor performance, in terms of sulphate reduction rate, was dependent on the nature of the carrier matrix, specifically the total surface area which was provided by the matrix for the establishment of biofilm. Among the three tested carrier matrices, sand displayed the superior performance and the maximum volumetric reduction rate of 1.7 g/L-h was achieved at the shortest residence time of 0.5 h. This volumetric reduction rate was 40 and 8 folds faster than the volumetric reduction rates obtained with glass beads (0.04 g/L-h; residence time: 28.6 h) and foam BSP (0.2 g/L-h; residence time: 5.3 h), respectively. Further kinetic studies with sand as a carrier matrix indicated that the extent of volumetric reduction rate was dependent on the feed sulphate concentration and volumetric loading rate. At a constant feed sulphate concentration, increases in volumetric loading rate caused the volumetric reduction rate to pass through a maximum, while increases in feed sulphate concentrations from 1.0 g/L to 5.0 g/L led to lower volumetric reduction rates. The maximum volumetric reduction rates achieved in the bioreactors fed with initial sulphate concentration of 1.0, 2.5 and 5.0 g/L were 1.71, 0.82 and 0.68 g/L-h, respectively. The coupling of lactate utilization to sulphate reduction was observed in all experimental runs and the rates calculated based on the experimental data were in close agreement with calculated theoretical rates, using the stoichiometry of the reactions involved. The maximum volumetric reduction rates achieved in the immobilized cell bioreactors were significantly faster than those reported for freely suspended cells employed in the stirred tank bioreactors.

An External Loop Airlift Bioreactor with a small amount (99% porosity) of stainless steel mesh packing inserted in the riser section was used for bioremediation of a phenol polluted air stream. The packing enhanced VOC and oxygen mass transfer rates and provided a large surface area for cell immobilization. Using a pure strain of Pseudomonas putida, fed-batch and continuous runs at three different dilution rates were completed with phenol in the polluted air as the only source of growth substrate. 100% phenol removal was achieved at phenol loading rates up to 33120 mg/h.m3 using only one third of the column, superior to any previously reported biodegradation rates of phenol polluted air with 100% efficiency. A mathematical model has been developed and is shown to accurately predict the transient and steady state data.

Packed beds find extensive application in a wide variety of industries to cany out a large number of diverse processes. The main objective of the present work is to develop models to predict the arrangement of particles and based on them, to determine and evaluate the structural characteristics of packed beds. These problems have received only a limited attention in the literature. As a first attempt, spheres of uniform size are considered. Beds of aspect ratio up to 2 (referred to as low aspect ratio beds) are analyzed by application of principles of analytical geometry. Expressions are derived for the location of particles and for the structural characteristics of the beds, both of which show periodicity. This leads to the concept of a unit cell which is the repetitive section of the bed whose characteristics are the same as those of the complete bed. The beds fall into three distinct groups — those with aspect ratio between 1 and l√3⁄2, between 1√3⁄2 and 2, and with aspect ratio 2. Equations are distinct for each group. The aspect ratio shows marked influence on the structural characteristics of the beds. Agreement of the predictions on the overall void fraction with the available experimental data is excellent. Radial void fraction profiles are estimated by defining a concentric cylindrical channel (CCC) of an arbitrary thickness and with the cylindrical surface through the radial position of interest located at the middle of the CCC, and by accounting for the solid volumes of all the segments (in this CCC) of spheres with centers lying within a distance of a particle radius on either side of the cylindrical surface. The curved boundaries of the sphere segments are rigorously accounted for. The results show that the entire bed is filled with variations in the void fraction, starting from a value of unity at the wall and zero (or close to zero) towards the axis of the bed. Monte Carlo model for the simulation of high aspect ratio beds has not proved successful even with any of a wide variety of distribution functions for the coordinates of the sphere dropping point. With uniform distribution, the only distribution used in all the reports so far, and with normal distribution, there is not even a qualitative agreement with the reported data on void fraction variations. Distributions with asymmetric density functions such as exponential, Weibull, gamma and beta, show considerable improvement; beta distribution being the best. However even the best results with beta distribution show satisfactory agreement with the experimental data only up to about 2dp from the wall. Simulations with the cluster growth model, modified to account for the confining nature of the wall, lead to more satisfactory results. The proposed algorithm consists of building up the cluster, sphere by sphere, by calculating all possible interior and wall sites for placing an incoming sphere in a stable and non-overlapping position on the current cluster. A preference parameter is defined to place the new sphere at locations along the cross section of the column at which the experimental void fraction profiles show prominent minima, that is, locations around which the bed has relatively high solid volume. Void fraction profiles in beds of various aspect ratios simulated by this model show good agreement with the corresponding experimental data. The structural characteristics of the high aspect ratio beds thus simulated are evaluated. The number of spheres per unit length, Ni is correlated with the aspect ratio. It becomes proportional to the square of the aspect ratio, with the proportionality constant being close to 0.9, for aspect ratios greater than about 10. This follows since in these beds the overall void fraction becomes constant at 0.4. Majority of the spheres have contacts (with neighboring spheres) between 4 and 7, with the lower and upper limits for the coordination number being 2 and 9. The radial profile of the average coordination number (averaged over the height of the bed at the given radial position) shows small oscillations about a mean value of about 6 over almost the entire bed cross section starting from a distance of about ldp from the wall. At a distance of 0.5dp from the wall the predominant number of contacts is four while the mean value is about 4.3. The overall coordination number (averaged over the entire bed) shows inverse dependence on the aspect ratio. For random packings, that is, as the aspect ratio becomes infinity, the overall coordination number tends to six which corresponds to regular cubic arrangement. Cumulative number fraction, CNf is a global measure of the arrangement of spheres in beds of high aspect ratio. Its radial variation shows four distinct regions whose locations are independent of the aspect ratio The CNf values in each region are correlated with aspect ratio The correlations combined with that of NL lead to a very useful and effective model for predicting void fraction profiles in a bed of any specified aspect ratio The validity of the predictive model is demonstrated

Thermal energy storage (TES) is one of the most attractive and cost effective solutions to the intermittent generation systems like solar, wind and other renewable sources, compared to alternatives. It creates a bridge between the power supply and demand during peak hours or at times of emergency to ensure the continuous supply of energy. Among all the TES systems, latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) draws lots of interests as it has high energy density and can store or retrieve energy isothermally. Two major technical challenges associated with the LHTES are low thermal conductivity of the phase change materials (PCMs), and corrosion tendency of the containment vessel with the PCMs. Macro-encapsulation of the PCM is one of the techniques to encounter the low thermal conductivity issue as it will maximize the heat transfer area for the given volume of the PCM and restrict the PCMs to get in contact with the containment vessel. However, finding a suitable encapsulation technique that can address the volumetric expansion problem and compatible shell material are significant barriers of this approach. In the present work, an innovative technique to encapsulate PCMs that melt in the 100-350 oC temperature range was developed for industrial and private applications. This technique did not require a sacrificial layer to accommodate the volumetric expansion of the PCMs on melting. The encapsulation consisted of coating a non-reactive polymer over the PCM pellet followed by deposition of a metal layer by a novel non-vacuum metal deposition technique. The fabricated spherical capsules were tested in different heat transfer fluid (HTF) environments like air, oil and molten salt (solar salt). Thermophysical properties of the PCMs were investigated by DSC/TGA, IR and weight change analysis before and after the thermal cycling. Also, the constrained melting and solidification of sodium nitrate PCM inside the spherical capsules of different sizes were compared to explore the charging and discharging time. To accomplish this, three thermocouples were installed vertically inside the capsule at three equidistant positions. Low-density graphene was dispersed in the PCM to increase its conductivity and compared with pure PCM capsules. A laboratory scale packed-bed LHTES system was designed and built to investigate the performance of the capsules. Sodium nitrate (m.p. 306oC) was used as the PCM and air was used as the heat transfer fluid (HTF). The storage system was operated between 286oC and 326oC and the volumetric flow rate of the HTF was varied from 110 m3/h to 151 m3/h. The temperature distribution along the bed (radially and axially) and inside the capsules was monitored continuously during charging and discharging of the system. The effect of the HTF mass flow rate on the charging and discharging time and on the pressure drop across the bed was evaluated. Also, the energy and exergy efficiencies were calculated for three different flow rates. Finally, a step-by-step trial manufacturing process was proposed to produce large number of spherical capsules.

An improved steady-state method combining experiment and mathematical modelling has been developed to characterize the scalable convective heat transfer coefficient, hvol [W*m^(-3)*K^(-1)], of uncoated and catalyst-support coated aluminium foam monoliths. The values of hvol were recovered by parameter fitting its model values to experimental temperature data for steady-state air-cooled monoliths under a known heating flux. The model was built with experimentally recovered values of the monolith’s thermal conductivity and fluid permeability along with known values for other physical parameters. The volumetric heat transfer coefficients of 10, 20 and 40 pore-per-inch uncoated aluminium foams were determined to range between 2,700 and 20,000 W*m^(-3)*K^(-1) at channel Reynolds numbers between 85 and 1,700. The presence of a 76 micron thick anodized layer of catalyst support on monolith foams effected a small but significant reduction in the value of hvol. Coating with an anodized layer also reduced the permeabilities of the monoliths to air flow by 4-20%. Knowledge of the scalable parameter, hvol, was used to model a steady-state non-isothermal, non-isobaric heat-coupled methanol reformer. The model shows that changes to the convective transfer coefficient due to coating the monolith with catalyst support may have significant consequences for the thermal profile of the model reactor and for the product yield. / Thesis (Master, Chemical Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2011-12-12 20:11:18.046

Orientador: João Cláudio Thoméo / Banca: José Teixeira Freire / Banca: Maria Aparecida Mauro / Resumo: O propósito deste trabalho foi obter parâmetros físicos e térmicos para simulação de reatores de leito fixo para fermentação em estado sólido (FES), empregando rejeitos sólidos agroindustriais como substratos e fungos como agentes fermentativos. Os materiais estudados foram bagaço de cana, resíduo agroindustrial comumente empregado na FES, e um meio composto por bagaços de cana e laranja e farelo de trigo na proporção 1:2:2 (p/p), substrato empregado para obtenção de enzimas pectinolíticas por FES. Foi determinada a condutividade térmica na estagnação (K0) pelo método da sonda linear. Observou-se que a condutividade era muito baixa para os recheios secos (inferior a 0,1 W/mºC), mas aumentava bruscamente para recheios muito úmidos (atingindo 0,5 W/mºC), o que foi atribuído à condução de calor através da água. Também foram determinados os parâmetros térmicos dos leitos percolados por ar com baixas vazões, típicas da FES. Os valores da condutividade térmica efetiva radial (Kr) obtidos foram muito baixos, tendendo ao valor da estagnação, e os valores do coeficiente convectivo de transferência de calor parede-fluido (hp) foram muito inferiores aos encontrados na literatura, devido às baixas vazões de ar. Foram desenvolvidos programas para aquisição de dados experimentais de temperatura por meio do software de interface gráfica LabView (National Instruments). Também foram desenvolvidos programas em MatLab para cálculo dos parâmetros térmicos dos sistemas, tanto para o modelo unidimensional (coeficiente global U) quanto para o bidimensional. Esses programas permitiram calcular os parâmetros térmicos imediatamente após aquisição dos dados do processo. Programas de simulação numérica foram desenvolvidos em MatLab para simular o crescimento do fungo termofílico Thermomucor indicae seudaticae N31 e o comportamento térmico do processo de FES... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The purpose of this work was to get physical and thermal parameters for simulation of reactors of fixed packed beds percolated by air for solid state fermentation (SSF), using agro- industrial solid residues as substrata and molds as fermentative agents. The materials studied were sugar cane bagasse, agro-industrial residue commonly used in SSF, and a medium composed by sugar cane and orange bagasses and wheat bran in ratio 1:2:2 (w/w), substratum used for pectinolitics enzymes attainment for SSF. The thermal conductivity on stagnation (K0) was determined by heating linear method. It was observed that the conductivity was very low for dried materials (below 0,1 W/mºC), but increased brusquely for very humid materials (reaching 0,5 W/mºC), what it was admitted to be due to conduction of heat through the water. Also the thermal parameters of the fixed packed beds percolated by air with low outflows, typical of SSF, had been determined. The values of the thermal conductivity radial effective (Kr) gotten had been very low, tending to the value of the stagnation, and the values of the convective coefficient of heat transfer wall-fluid (hp) had been very below to the found on literature, which had to the low air outflows. Programs for acquisition of experimental data of temperature by means of the software of graphical interface LabView had been developed (National Instruments). Also programs in MatLab for calculation of the thermal parameters of the systems had been developed, as much for the one-dimensional model (global coefficient U) how much for the two-dimensional. These programs had allowed calculating the thermal parameters immediately after acquisition of the data of the process. Programs of numerical simulation had been developed in MatLab to simulate the growth of thermopile mold Thermomucor indicae seudaticae N31 and the thermal behavior of the process of SSF lead by Umsza Guez... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre