On the calculation of the elastic modulus of a biofilm streamer

Biofilm mechanical properties are essential in quantifying the rate of microbial detachment, a key process in determining the function and structure of biofilm systems. Although properties such as biofilm elastic moduli, yield stress and cohesive strength have been studied before, a wide range of values for the biofilm Young's modulus that differ by several orders of magnitude are reported in the literature. In this article, we use experimental data reported in Stoodley et al. [Stoodley et al., Biotechnol Bioeng (1999): 65(l):83-92] and present a methodology for the calculation of Young's modulus, which partially explains the large difference between the values reported in the literature. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2008;101: 196-200. (C) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.