Show off your skills and solve real design problems
NASA’s Synthetic Biology Project is turning to the 3D printing experts in the GrabCAD community for ideas and or designs that could lead to the ability to reuse and recycle small scale bioreactors to reduce the mass and volume requirements for deep space missions. Ideally, designs that could be printed using a 3D printer, using recyclable plastics, or a design using cleanable and reusable materials can be created.
The Synthetic Biology Project has developed BioNutrient Production Packs (also called bioreactors) where nutrients can be produced on demand utilizing bio-engineered microorganisms that are grown when needed. These organisms have been modified to produce key nutrients such as beta carotene, which is critical for healthy crews on long duration missions. The dormant microorganisms are activated by adding water to a BioNutrient Production Pack which also contains a growth media.
Early production packs (Gen-0) had a hard shell (polycarbonate) with a gas permeable membrane (PTFE) and required more mass and volume than the follow-on Gen-1 “soft pack” designs which resemble a medical saline bag. The Gen-1 bag material is made from a gas permeable plastic (FEP) so that gasses produced during growth, such as ethanol and carbon dioxide (CO2), can escape and do not over-pressurize the bag. The bags also have a port to add water and, after growth is complete, to extract the contents for testing and/or consumption. Any successful design will need to provide access to enough oxygen (accomplished via membranes or materials in the first two bioreactor generations Gen 0, Gen 1), and provide enough volume or a method to release of CO2 to limit risks of pressurization and CO2 build up. The design must allow introduction of water/media/organisms and to allow crew access to the final product.
Key problem(s) to be solved or system(s) to be designed.
Since the mass and volume of launching and transporting many single-use BioNutrient Production Packs on a long mission would be significant, the Synthetic Biology Project is looking for ideas and/or designs that could lead to the ability to readily manufacture and reuse or recycle a new BioNutrient bioreactor design so that only the dormant microorganisms and growth media need to resupplied from Earth. It can be assumed a general use additive manufacturing facility similar to one demonstrated by an earlier NASA project would be available on the mission.
High-level requirements, assumptions and/or constraints.
There are no constraints on shape or size. Designs can be for a reusable reactor, or a recyclable reactor, preferably made from materials that can be readily recycled back into more feedstocks to re-make the reactor again. Any reusable designs should consider the difficulties of cleaning and sterilizing objects in space.
The bioreactor should support liquid culture volumes up to 100 mL and can allow gas exchange with cabin atmosphere or otherwise provide oxygen supply and CO2 removal to allow for aerobic culture growth and prevent pressure build up. The design materials should tolerate pH range 4 – 8, support growth of common fermented food microbes, and have port(s) ideally compatible with standard luer lock connecting components for addition (e.g., water to hydrate culture) and removal of materials for things like safety testing, sub-culturing, and consumption. Bioreactor would ideally consist of material rated food-safe and tolerate temperatures ranging from +4 degrees Celsius (+39 degrees F) and up to +82 degrees Celsius (+180 degrees F). Product safety, especially from contamination, is essential for future implementation.
We have provided images of the Gen-0 and Gen-1 bioreactors as two very different examples that both support safe culture growth. A bioreactor design that can be additively manufactured may more closely resemble the Gen-0 hard pack design since a soft pack design may not lend itself to additive manufacturing processes. A novel approach resembling neither design might be the best solution.
Background:
Studies have shown that nutrients in food and supplements degrade with time. Fresh foods are a rare commodity for space travel, but an alternative fresh nutritive product could be accommodated through in-flight production. The capability for on-demand production of food-safe products which provide key nutrients and therapeutics is essential for future long-duration missions. The BioNutrients experiments demonstrate the potential for engineered microorganisms to supplement crew food supplies through on-demand in situ production of fresh, high-value nutrients.
BioNutrients-1 is a 5-year flight experiment, launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2019, investigating microbial and media storage and time-course nutrient production utilizing a hard-cased production pack. BioNutrients-2 is a 6-month flight experiment, launched in 2022, testing a low volume, lightweight production bag to produce yeast-based nutrients and medically-relevant compounds, and food products. Improvements on the bioreactor design are being sought to improve bioreactor reusability, performance, and output. The ability to resourcefully print a ready-to-use bioreactor allows for a reduction in material and logistics that may provide a more cost-effective production solution over single use bioreactors.
Below are images of BioNutrients-1 (yeast) and BioNutrients-2 (yogurt) production packs for on-demand production of key nutrients.
This project addresses the following NASA technology, science, or other objective/gap:
2021-2944-TX06 Safe, Acceptable, and Nutritious Food System;
2021-2945-TX06 Food Resources Requirements and Efficiency;
2021-3616-TX11 Low-Hydration Food for Exploration Missions
Challenge Details:
The problem is how to support microbial culture growth in this bioreactor in space that is either recyclable or re-usable. The media and water and organisms will be supplied by the vehicle. The bioreactor must allow containment of the liquid culture, allow for gas exchange (oxygen and CO2) and allow safe access for final consumption. To understand the amounts of gas build up/gas exchange required, we offer this data. Yeast fermentation in each BN-1 pack produces about 240 mL of CO2 gas. To avoid pressurizing the reactor, this gas must be vented through the reactor’s porous membrane, in microgravity, without clogging the membrane or allowing any liquid to escape. Each cell produces CO2 at a rate proportional to its metabolic rate, and cells are likely to be distributed evenly within the aqueous growth solution in microgravity.
Design Requirements:
Assumptions:
Assumptions are initial starting points surrounding the project. These may be changed if justifying rationale emerges as the project develops.
o Graphical Products
○ CAD model of a BioNutrient Production Pack that could be additively manufactured.
○ Images showing fabrication of the Production Pack.
o Data Product
○ Examples of similar items produced via additive manufacturing:
■ Use and recycling of materials such as PEM and PDMS
■ Additively manufacturing flexible tubes and Luer Locks and similar fittings
■ Assembling flexible additively manufactured components
Innovative Idea/Design:
Seeking an outside-the-box thinking approach. Consider the 3D printed coffee cup which evolved from Astronaut Don Pettit’s low-gravity cup which he designed while aboard the International Space Station in 2008.
CAD models, data, or other references:
BioNutrients-1 Gen-0 production packs: contents are contained in a hard-shell case with a gas permeable membrane lid that allows carbon dioxide from the yeast to escape. Water is injected into the case through a detachable filter system. Image credit: NASA/Dominic Hart
BioNutrients-1: introduction of filtered water to the lyophilized yeast cultures in the Gen-0 production pack
BioNutrients-2 Gen-1 production packs: flat pack FEP bag design where contents are added before sealing one end of the bag. Filtered water is added through the port for rehydration of the contents in the bag. Membrane is a gas permeable material with a 91% reduction in mass compared to the Gen-0 system
BioNutrients-2: yogurt production packs
Current Gen2 design (non-recyclable)
Key criteria that must be included in the submissions:
Please consider answering these questions:
• Are there Earth based analogs for similar 3D printed/created items?
• Provide a description and explanation of how your unique design and concept may meet the design challenge of a food-grade/safe 3D printable bioreactor.
Submissions should include:
1. A model or graphic of the proposed solution
2. A description of how your idea can lead to the ability to recycle or fabricate bioreactors on demand.
Submissions will be evaluated based on their innovation and the potential to be used in space for generating bioreactors using additive manufacturing.
Project owner(s):
Hami Ray, PhD
Deputy Project Manager
Frances Donovan, PhD
Project Manager, Principal Investigator
Detailed requirements, assumptions and/or constraints:
1. The competitor shall deliver final CAD and/or animations used in the development of the concept.
a. Model File Formats shall be delivered in STEP or IGES.
b. Renderings: .jpg or .png formats
2. The competitor shall deliver any reports or supplemental information in PDF/MS Word format.
If zipped, the file compression shall be compatible with Windows 10 and not require any special software to unzip.
File Format Guidelines
o All text documents should be in Microsoft Word
o All animations should be compatible with embedding in Microsoft PowerPoint and separate viewing in Windows Media Player
o All final CAD models must be saved as STEP files
o Use a CAD file naming convention that makes it easy to determine how each file fits into the larger assembly.
Eligibility: Solutions from countries listed as Type 1, 2, or 3 on the NASA Designated Countries List are Not eligible for monetary prizes. The list is frequently updated, and the latest version can be found here. This challenge is not open to NASA Personnel.
ENTERING THE COMPETITION The Challenge is open to everyone except employees and families of GrabCAD and the Sponsor. Multiple entries are welcome. Team entries are welcome. By entering the Challenge you: 1. Accept the official GrabCAD Challenges Terms & Conditions. 2. Agree to be bound by the decisions of the judges (Jury). 3. Warrant that you are eligible to participate. 4. Warrant that the submission is your original work. 5. Warrant, to the best of your knowledge, your work is not, and has not been in production or otherwise previously published or exhibited. 6. Warrant neither the work nor its use infringes the intellectual property rights (whether a patent, utility model, functional design right, aesthetic design right, trademark, copyright or any other intellectual property right) of any other person. 7. Warrant participation shall not constitute employment, assignment or offer of employment or assignment. 8. Are not entitled to any compensation or reimbursement for any costs. 9. Agree the Sponsor and GrabCAD have the right to promote all entries. If you think an entry may infringe on existing copyrighted materials, please email challenges@grabcad.com.
SUBMITTING AN ENTRY Only entries uploaded to GrabCAD through the "Submit entry" button on this Challenge page will be considered an entry. Only public entries are eligible. We encourage teams to use GrabCAD Workbench for developing their entries. Entries are automatically given the tag "Bioreactor for Deep Space Food Production" when uploading to GrabCAD. Please do not edit or delete this tag. Only entries with valid tag will participate in the Challenge.
AWARDING THE WINNERS The sum of the Awards is the total gross amount of the reward. The awarded participant is solely liable for the payment of all taxes, duties, and other similar measures if imposed on the reward pursuant to the legislation of the country of his/her residence, domicile, citizenship, workplace, or any other criterion of similar nature. Only 1 award per person. Prizes may not be transferred or exchanged. All winners will be contacted by the GrabCAD staff to get their contact information and any other information needed to get the prize to them. Payment of cash awards is made through Checks mailed to the Winners. All team awards will be transferred to the member who entered the Challenge. Vouchers will be provided in the form of Stratasys Direct Manufacturing promo codes. We will release the finalists before the announcement of the winners to give the Community an opportunity to share their favorites in the comments, discuss concerns, and allow time for any testing or analysis by the Jury. The Jury will take the feedback into consideration when picking the winners. Winning designs will be chosen based on the Rules and Requirements schedule.
Intellectual property considerations:
Copyright Stipulations
o All material (including the CAD model itself and all written documents) must be free of any copyright restrictions.
○ Use only models, photos, or images created during the project unless you have obtained the right from the copyright owner for unrestricted use – do not blindly copy images from internet websites.
■ images on .gov websites are often (but not always) public data; check before assuming it is public material.
■ CAD-Only Rendering Requirement – All renderings and visual representations submitted for NASA challenges must be directly generated from CAD software or other approved design tools. The use of generative AI to create or enhance submissions is prohibited. This policy ensures that all entries are original works and prevents the inadvertent inclusion of copyrighted material that may be present in AI generated content. Participants are responsible for ensuring their submissions comply with this requirement to maintain the integrity of the challenge and respect intellectual property rights.
○ Include documentation of any usage permissions
The Government is seeking a full government purpose usage license for further development of the concept. It is hoped that the winning concepts can be included in a follow-on study, funded by NASA ESTO Advanced Component Technology (ACT).
Schedule This Challenge ends on February 24, 2025 at 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time. Any Changes after the date will be considered as disqualifications.
Evaluation criteria and weighting factors (what you will base your judgment on).
Key factors include:
• Does the design provide a feasible method for fabrication, reuse, or recycling in space?
• What design requirements could be met?
• Likelihood of culture growth and production without leaks or contamination.
A scoring rubric will be used by the judges.
1st Place: $3,000
2nd Place (2x): $1,250
3rd Place (3x): $500
A BN-1 flight design production pack spare from the original experiment.
Mission sticker and patch.
The SynBio Project is funded by NASA Game Changing Development Program within the Space Technology Mission Directorate.
If you don't receive the email within an hour (and you've checked your Spam folder), email us as confirmation@grabcad.com.
42 comments
Braxton Moody 2 months ago
The link for the following seems to be broken:
"NASA technology, science, or other objective/gap"
Carlos Sebastián Di Giulio 2 months ago
Hello, I can't access this link: " NASA technology, science, or other objective/gap."
Marcelo Valderrey 2 months ago
Hello and thank you very much for this new challenge!
.
If you had to choose the advantages of the current designs (rigid and flexible) to "ideally bring them together" in a new design, what would they be?
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I understand that the rigid approach is bulky and heavy but potentially recyclable or reusable, and that the flexible approach is compact but not recyclable and perhaps not reusable. Apart from this, operationally (or in any other aspect) what is preferred? rigid or flexible?
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If you could ask "anything" of the new design... would you say, for example, that it be compact and flexible, but recyclable and/or reusable? Or that it be rigid, recyclable and/or reusable but light and not bulky?
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Thank you very much!
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PS: I'm just asking you to say "what you want" without thinking about "if it's possible" and even less about "how to do it". The initial wishes of the requester are vital to guide the designer... even if he can't fulfill all of them.
Inge Lab about 2 months ago
🦗🦗🦗
😴
Clarisa Medina about 2 months ago
Confirmed @Inge Lab: there is no life on this planet!
Inge Lab about 2 months ago
Clarisa, let's understand that they could be on a mission... and that space transmissions always suffer some delay.
About 16 days delay (1,382,400 sec) at a speed of 299,792 km/s would indicate that they are about 2,537 light years away... perhaps, in the Andromeda Galaxy? 😂
Germano Pecoraro Designer about 2 months ago
I don't understand this contest:
what is a Bioreactor!?
So Merry Christmas!
Carlos Sebastián Di Giulio about 2 months ago
Hello Germano,
A bioreactor is a vessel or system that maintains a biologically active environment. It can be defined as a system designed, deployed to facilitate the growth of biological mass through the transformation or degradation of the material fed to the reactor. Wikipedia reference.
Merry chrismas
Clarisa Medina about 2 months ago
I don't understand why they organize a challenge (which makes a lot of people work for free) and they don't even attend the chat! It completely puts me off participating (yeah yeah, I know, nobody cares... hahaha).
PS: thanks @Inge Lab for your sense of humor, it helps me avoid perceiving this as a lack of consideration.
Alok Kumar Malik (Ardonx) about 2 months ago
Hi Clarisa,
I completely understand your perspective, and I truly appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts. Challenges like these are meant to bring people together to contribute their creativity and skills toward meaningful innovations, and I can see how it might feel discouraging if communication doesn’t seem as engaging as expected.
Please know that the organizers might be managing various aspects of the challenge simultaneously, which could limit their presence in the chat. However, the primary goal of such challenges, especially one tied to something as inspiring as NASA’s space program, is to foster innovation and collaboration, and every participant plays an important role in that.
It’s important to note that the purpose of challenges like these isn't about working for free but rather using the platform to showcase your talent, creativity, and skills. It’s a great opportunity to motivate others and be part of a community of like-minded individuals working toward meaningful innovation, particularly in a field as exciting and impactful as space exploration.
Thanks again for your input, and I hope we can all continue to inspire and support each other here!
Best regards,
Alok
Carlos Sebastián Di Giulio about 2 months ago
Hi Frances Donovan and Hami Ray:
Question: can a metal component be used, or must it be entirely plastic?
Hami Ray about 2 months ago
Well stated, @Alok!
Hami Ray about 2 months ago
Hi @Marcelo. For this challenge, we are flexibility/rigidity agnostic. A note that this bioreactor is to be built in space, so "weight" is not a concern/issue (only an issue for upmass). The total amount of material to be used may be a concern; resources matter but only if they are not reusable/recyclable. We are looking for any and all creative ideas/approaches.
Hami Ray about 2 months ago
Hi @Carlos. As long as your bioreactor idea(s) meets the requirements called out in the competition, we'll consider it.
Marcelo Valderrey about 2 months ago
Thank you so much @Hami Ray
Carlos Sebastián Di Giulio about 2 months ago
Hi @Hami Ray , another questions.
If the bioreactor is reused, is there a cleaning protocol for it? Or should we develop it in this challenge? Taking into account that water is a resource that must be administered with the precision of a surgeon.
Hami Ray about 2 months ago
Hi @Carlos Sebastián Di Giulio. Great question! Ideas and/or designs toward the reuse of a bioreactor should include (potential) approaches on how to clean AND sterilize the component(s) being reused. There are existing (limited/specialized) methods to sterilize items (e.g., think disinfectant wipes, UV light, etc.) on the ISS; however, consideration should be made on material applicability, ease of use (e.g., readily available, etc.), effectiveness, durability of materials after x number of cleaning/sterilization and use... Remember - seeking an outside-the-box thinking approach....all innovative ideas welcome!
Kaua Amorim about 2 months ago
Are people from Brazil elligible for the prize? I didn't manage to see which countries are "type 1, type 2".
Carlos Sebastián Di Giulio about 2 months ago
Thank you so much @Hami Ray
cihad lolak about 1 month ago
There is a problem with downloading specifications
Melville about 1 month ago
Hi Nasa Team @Hami Ray and @Frances Donovan
I am planning an entry design is not yet finalized
I have worked with lactobacillus and streptococcus Thermo in home made yogurt
From Now Foods 10 Probiotics This helped me heal IBS and grow muscles
The heirloom bacteria require 40 -50 degrees Celsius to grow
The yogurt taste is heavenly
Will it have negative points if I include heater in my design
Thanking you for precious time and reading my comment
Javier Rivera about 1 month ago
how long is the bacteria life cycle? How many days from inoculation of media and bacteria to harvesting?
Andres Long 28 days ago
This comment was removed
Taehwan Kim 26 days ago
Could I have the dimensions of standard luer lock you guys mentioned? No information for the dimension on website.
D G 24 days ago
Sorry, very basic question here, but perhaps important...
Is it assumed that the end users (astronauts) will be eating the yoghurt directly from the bioreactor? In the last sentence of paragraph 3 it is stated "...and to allow crew access to the final product" so I assume this is the case.
The submissions all look very interesting. The design by SJK3D seems especially promising since it looks like an astronaut could directly suck the contents from the aperture without risk of contents floating away.
zach hulsey 19 days ago
i have quite the alternative approach to the design challenge and i would like to know the following:
1) does the ISS have an autoclave onboard? any other sanitation method other than UV and sanitary wipes?
2) what is the physical constraints of the 3D printer up there, in terms of build volume? i know space is at a permium up there so i expect it to be small
zach hulsey 19 days ago
This comment was removed
N75 19 days ago
Sorry maybe this is a basic question, I want to follow the chalenge on grabcad. But I can't find any menu or form to submit my design. can anyone help?
nuswantoro_AG 17 days ago
I cannot click Download specification 🙄
frances donovan 15 days ago
Hey everyone - very sorry for the delayed response from this project owners - we were actually testing and doing the flight build for the next BioNutrients mission and the timing just lined up rather badly for us. We are online and going to get all the questions answered as best as we can now.
frances donovan 15 days ago
ok, some quick easy responses on some of the questions: Can it be metal - Yes. do we have an autoclave on orbit - no, but we may be able to heat to 82C which over time can kill many organisms. Carlos - thanks for explaining what we mean by bioreactor - for us it literally is just about anything you can successfully and reproducibly grow a cell culture in. Let me go back and grab some more of the questions
frances donovan 15 days ago
Hi Melville - no you will not get any points off if you include a heater, but its also ok to assume some heat source will be available for the cultures (or we may choose cultures like kefir that can grow at room temperature). Glad to know fermented foods helped you feel better. I love making yogurt too.
frances donovan 15 days ago
Hi DG - yes we'd like the crew to be able to directly consume or otherwise have access to the yogurt or other products made in the bioreactor and we want the designers to think about what that would look like in micro gravity, think about the control of the liquids and product once opened.
frances donovan 15 days ago
Hi Javier Rivera - good question. Most of the products we look at right now can be completed in as little as 8 hours (some yogurts), 24 hours (kefirs) or up to 48 hours for some yeast based items. We would expect a bioreactor to be used safely for at least 48 hours to be a successful design option but preferably a bit longer. I don't know if that answers your question or not.
frances donovan 15 days ago
Hi Marcelo Valderrey - interesting question that I think different people might have different answers for. For example, it takes resources like power to make something each time you make it, so if its recyclable, its components and materials might be re-used or repurposed or digested to molecules, but it will take more energy to make the next bioreactor. For those reasons, I'd lean towards re-usable. That being said, if you are making it via a heat extrusion method it might be a very clean new bioreactor, and that reduces the need for cleaning and reduces the risk of lack of sterility, so a fresh new bioreactor each time might be the safer option. There are lots of ways to buy down risk and buy down resources required - we're open to many different solutions.
zach hulsey 14 days ago
it is not allowing .doc or .docx files
frances donovan 11 days ago
Hi Zach Hulsey - let me check on that for you
Melville 6 days ago
Greetings and Hello Frances Donovan @NASA
Melville here again
Thanking you for your previous feedback
I am in intermediate stage of modeling
Will upload If I feel design is worth submitting!!
I will ask a tough question
Does NASA use Scaffolding for enabling enhanced cell division
This technique is used in osteocyte and stem cell bioreactors
This was there in gen 1 biopack
Thanks very much again
This scaffolding is a holy grail of bioreactors
frances donovan 2 days ago
Hi Melville - Biomanufacturing can use single celled organisms - microbes - and make products via microbial growth usually in a liquid culture. This is more of what our BioNutrients project has focused on. You are correct in that some types of biomanufacturing are from eukaryotes - often mammalian cell cultures as you've listed - and these often grow better when on a scaffold which often is critical to cell phenotype development. Nasa has flown experiments using hollow fiber reactors - these allow mammalian cells to grow on the fibers in a chamber through which various media types can be flowed. This allow the cells to be grown and specific growth factors, test reagents or other phenotype inducing reagents to be given to the cells at specific points in the culture process. Those hollow fiber chambers are quite difficult to make and would truly be a novel item to produce in space. For this challenge we were more focused on simpler, batch based cultures but any new thoughts on hollow fiber designs would be interesting to this judging pool, if not an expected part of the competition. Also a flow through based system could allow a microbial culture to become a fed-batch or continuous feed system - more complex but useful for certain applications. Thanks for participating and I hope this answered some of your questions!
frances donovan 2 days ago
Zach, it seems like some folks are getting theirs uploaded but I've made the grabcad folk aware of the issues and I hope its fixed for you
zach hulsey about 20 hours ago
its fine @Frances Donovan. i just printed the documents in question to .PDF files and uploaded that.
I will say I certainly took a wildly different approach from historical winners. I just can see the surface area to volume ratio problem sneaking up while scaling the previous ideas.
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