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In biotechnology, composition of biofilms and suspended bioaggregates can be crucial for system performance or product quality. Consequently, understanding biofilm dynamics is important for any process optimisation. The aim of this study was to investigate biofilm development and detachment under different hydrodynamic conditions and varying glucose load. Confocal laser scanning microscopy proved to be a fast method providing information about structure, distribution and volume ratio of bacteria and extra cellular polymers (EPS) within biofilms and detached biomass. As a result, it could be shown that biofilm structure, in terms of density and EPS volume, was largely influenced by hydrodynamic conditions. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the EPS:bacteria ratio and distribution was largely influenced by substrate load. Finally, the characteristics in biofilm structure and development were reflected in the composition and quantity of the detached biomass.

Biofilm cells differ phenotypically from their free-floating counterparts. Differential growth rates in biofilms are often referred to, particularly in response to limited diffusion of oxygen and nutrients. We observed growth rates of attached Pseudomonas sp. strain CT07 cells that were notably higher than the maximum specific growth rate measured in batch culture. Despite dilution rates in continuous flow cells that exceeded the maximum planktonic specific growth rate by 58 times, sampling of the effluent revealed >10(9) cells ml(-1), suggesting that biofilms function as a source of planktonic cells through high cell yield and detachment. Further investigation demonstrated considerable planktonic cell yield from biofilms as young as 6 h, indicating that detachment is not limited to established biofilms. These biofilm-detached cells were more sensitive to a commercial biocide than associated biofilm- and chemostat-cultivated populations, implying that detached biofilm cells exhibit a character that is distinct from that of attached and planktonic cell populations.