Biofilm Reactors

Choose Your Reactor by Research Area

Dental: Biofilms are central to oral health research, contributing to dental caries, periodontal disease, and implant-associated infections. The CDC Biofilm Reactor® and Rotating Disk Biofilm Reactor are well suited for simulating oral shear conditions and studying biofilm formation on dental materials. BST offers hydroxyapatite disc coupons (RD128-HA) that closely mimic the mineral composition of tooth enamel and bone, making them the standard substrate choice for oral biofilm research. Denture acrylic resin (PMMA) disc coupons (RD128-PMMA) are available for prosthetic surface studies, and titanium and cobalt chrome coupons support implant-associated biofilm research. Common species studied include Streptococcus mutans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Candida albicans.

Medical Devices and Healthcare: Biofilm formation on medical devices is a leading cause of healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial treatment failure. The CDC Biofilm Reactor® and Drip Flow Biofilm Reactor® are the most widely used platforms for medical device biofilm studies, supporting ASTM and USEPA standardized efficacy testing of disinfectants and antibiotics against surface-attached biofilms. Common species include Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus epidermidis.

Food Safety and Food Processing: Biofilm contamination on food-contact surfaces is a persistent challenge in food processing environments, contributing to product spoilage and pathogen transmission. The Industrial Surfaces Biofilm Reactor and Bio-inLine® Biofilm Reactor are well suited for studying biofilm formation on stainless steel, plastics, and other food-contact materials under low shear and intermittent wetting conditions. Common species include Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica, and Escherichia coli.

Drinking Water Distribution and Waste Water Processing: Biofilms in drinking water distribution systems contribute to water quality degradation, disinfectant demand, and the persistence of opportunistic pathogens. The Biofilm Annular Reactor is the primary tool for simulating pipeline flow conditions and evaluating disinfection strategies against water system biofilms. The Bio-inLine® Biofilm Reactor complements this by enabling in-situ biofilm monitoring directly within operating pipe systems. Common species of concern include Legionella pneumophila, Mycobacterium avium, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Bacterial Ecology and Environmental Biofilms: Biofilms play a fundamental role in microbial ecology, driving nutrient cycling, community dynamics, and environmental resilience. The Biofilm Annular Reactor and CDC Biofilm Reactor® are well suited for mixed-community biofilm studies, long-term time-course experiments, and investigations into how environmental variables such as shear, temperature, and substrate material influence biofilm structure and species composition.

The CDC Biofilm Reactor® (CBR) is the most widely used standardized biofilm reactor in the world, and the platform of choice for high-shear biocide and antibiotic efficacy testing. Eight polypropylene coupon holder rods, each holding three 1/2-inch (12.7 mm) diameter coupons, are suspended from a UHMW-polyethylene ported lid inside a 1-liter glass vessel. Shear is generated by a magnetic stir bar and vane, with growth media circulated continuously through the side-arm discharge port. Supports time-course biofilm studies, multi-material comparative testing, and both aerobic and anaerobic biofilm culture.

(Standardized Methods: ASTM E2562, ASTM E3161, ASTM E2871, MB-19, and MB-20)

The Drip Flow Biofilm Reactor® (DFR) grows biofilm under low shear, gravity-fed continuous flow conditions, making it well suited for antimicrobial efficacy testing, medical device surface studies, wound models, and other low-flow environments. Four or six parallel channels each hold one standard microscope slide-sized coupon, enabling multi-sample biofilm formation across different materials in a single run. Available in polysulfone, PET, and anodized aluminum, with catheter-modified configurations available on request.

(Standardized Method: ASTM E2647)

The Biofilm Annular Reactor (BAR) is designed to simulate the hydrodynamic conditions found inside water distribution and wastewater pipelines, making it a primary tool for drinking water biofilm research, disinfection strategy development, and pipeline fouling studies. Process fluid flows through the annular space between two concentric cylinders, with biofilm accumulating on 20 removable slides mounted on the rotating inner cylinder. Flow velocity and shear stress are controlled independently via a variable-speed DC motor (30 to 500 RPM), allowing researchers to replicate a wide range of real-world pipe flow conditions. Supports time-course biofilm monitoring, multi-material coupon testing, and statistically robust sampling across a high coupon count per run. Available in standard and jacketed configurations for temperature-controlled studies.