Variability in kinetic parameter estimates: A review of possible causes and a proposed terminology

The measured kinetics of a bacterial culture degrading a single organic compound as sole carbon source in a batch reactor depend on the history of the culture, the identifiability of the parameters, and the manner in which the experiment to measure them is run. The initial substrate to biomass ratio used in the experiment is particularly important because it influences both parameter identifiability and the expression of the culture history. Reasons for these effects are reviewed using information from the literature and a nomenclature is proposed whereby investigators can make the nature of reported kinetic parameters clear.