Minimizing the errors associated with the determination of effective diffusion coefficients when using spherical cell immobilization matrices.

Gel materials are often used to entrap biological catalysts. Several experimental methods have been proposed to estimate the diffusion coefficient of important chemical species within these materials. An error analysis for the bead method was performed and, contrary to previously reported results, when proper experimental conditions were employed, the error associated with the bead method was similar to that obtained using the other common methods.