# untangle.bio

> untangle.bio is a browser-based bioprocess design tool. It generates and
> ranks purification routes for a target molecule, simulates the mass and
> energy balance of every step, and runs techno-economic analysis (TEA: CAPEX,
> OPEX, cost of goods, payback) at any production scale. It covers 72 unit
> operations (fermentation, centrifugation, micro/ultra/nanofiltration,
> chromatography, crystallization, precipitation, extraction, drying) and 300+
> molecules and cell types with physical property data.

## What it does

- Route generation: enumeration plus an evolutionary search over feasible
  downstream sequences, filtered by 62 expert rules that block infeasible
  designs (chromatography prerequisites, fouling, size order, drying last).
- Upstream: a dynamic Monod/OTR fermentation model with a 9-organism library.
  kLa follows from agitation and aeration; product inhibition and solubility
  cap the titer instead of a hard limit.
- Simulation: mass-flow material balance with pH tracking, temperature-
  corrected solubility, membrane flux decline and multi-product branching.
- Economics: CAPEX and OPEX per unit operation, cost of goods, working
  capital, tornado charts for the levers that actually move the cost.
- Optimize and goal seek: pick an objective (yield, purity, cost of goods,
  CAPEX and five more) and search the flowsheet parameters against it, or set
  a target cost per kg and get the route — or the binding constraint.
- Accounts and cloud projects, CSV and printable-report export, and per-user
  unit and currency preferences.

The engine is also available to AI assistants as a remote MCP (Model Context
Protocol) server at https://mcp.untangle.bio/mcp — any MCP client (Claude,
ChatGPT, Cursor, custom agents) can generate processes, simulate separations
and run TEA directly, and gets back mermaid flowsheets, PNG charts and deep
links into the canvas. Setup: https://untangle.bio/docs.html
The complete machine-readable reference — every tool with its full JSON
argument schema, the server instructions and the canonical workflow — is at
https://untangle.bio/llms-full.txt
A curated OpenAPI spec of the same engine over plain HTTP (bearer-token auth)
is at https://untangle.bio/openapi.json

## Start here

- [Product overview](https://untangle.bio/): what untangle.bio does
- [Documentation](https://untangle.bio/docs.html): how to design and simulate a process
- [Unit operation equations](https://untangle.bio/equations.html): the mass balance,
  sizing, energy and cost-scaling equations of every unit operation, with
  worked examples computed by the engine
- [Pricing](https://untangle.bio/pricing): free tier, Academic and Pro plans
- [Changelog](https://untangle.bio/changelog): what changed recently, newest first
- [About](https://untangle.bio/about): who makes untangle.bio and how to reach him

## Blog

- [How to Choose the Right Separation Technology](https://untangle.bio/blog/choose-your-separation-tech)
- [Design Your Downstream Process on Day One](https://untangle.bio/blog/downstream-design-day-one)
- [5 Unit Operations Behind 90% of Purification Trains](https://untangle.bio/blog/five-unit-operations)
- [What Downstream Processing Really Costs Startups](https://untangle.bio/blog/purification-cost-tax)
- [What Investors Should Know About Manufacturing Costs](https://untangle.bio/blog/vc-guide-bioprocess-costs)