Biocatalytic processes (using one or more enzymes) for the production of chemicals is an important potential route to more sustainable manufacturing and today have found application in several industries, but most notably in the pharmaceutical sector. For high-priced pharmaceuticals, the development of new processes is primarily dependent upon enzyme development. However, the wider application of biocatalytic processes towards lower-priced chemicals will demand reaction engineering to be considered, alongside biocatalyst development. Bioreaction engineering should include an evaluation of the thermodynamics and reaction kinetics, as well as the stability of the biocatalyst. In this brief article, tools to assist in the collection and evaluation of reaction engineering data will be discussed, and illustrated using biological oxidation as an example.

用于生产化学品的生物催化工艺（使用一种或多种酶）是实现更可持续生产的重要潜在途径，并且如今已在多个行业中得到应用，但最显着的是在制药领域。对于高价药品，新工艺的开发主要取决于酶的开发。然而，将生物催化方法广泛应用于低价化学品将需要与生物催化剂开发一起考虑反应工程。生物反应工程应包括对热力学和反应动力学以及生物催化剂稳定性的评估。在这篇简短的文章中，将讨论协助收集和评估反应工程数据的工具，并以生物氧化为例进行说明。