Separation Processes Symposium 2026 Recap: Chemical-Bio Innovation through Digital Twin
SIMACRO’s 2026 Separation Processes Symposium served as a nexus for the Chemical and Bio industries to explore the future of process engineering. The event was held in recognition of Prof. Andreas Seidel-Morgenstern, a world-renowned scholar and a Director at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems. As Jay Yun, CEO of SIMACRO, noted:
"Scholars like Professor Seidel-Morgenstern have made complex processes understandable, systematic, and amenable to modeling, enabling the digital twin advances we see today."
Symposium Agenda:
Plenary Lecture: Importance and fascination of separation processes – Prof. Andreas Seidel-Morgenstern
Invited Talk 1: Advanced Amino Acid Purification: Crystallization Kinetics & Simulated Moving Bed (SMB) Applications – CJ BIO
Invited Talk 2: Digital Twin (DT) Development Strategy for Data-Limited Industrial Bioprocesses – Junwoo Kim (SIMACRO)
Invited Talk 3: Current Applications and Future Directions of Protein A Affinity Chromatography in mAb Therapeutics Industry – Eun Kyu Lee (Hanyang Univ. & Immunoforge, Inc.)
Invited Talk 4: Optimization of Analytical Conditions for Polysaccharide-Based Chiral Columns – Chi-Woo Lee (Chiral Technology Korea)
Invited Talk 5: Case-Study of SMB (Simulated Moving Bed) in ProcessMetaverse™ (PMv) – Ju Weon Lee (SIMACRO)
The Legacy of First Principles: Navigating the "Forest of Options"
Speaker: Prof. Andreas Seidel-Morgenstern | Topic: Importance and Fascination of Separation Processes
Prof. Seidel-Morgenstern introduced the "Forest of Options," warning that choosing separation methods without rigorous thermodynamics leads to failure. He issued a critical reminder: "It is critical to have this data early in the phase; otherwise, you will do the wrong process." This emphasis on first principles—understanding fundamental physics before execution—is the core philosophy SIMACRO integrates into every model. This respect for foundational science allows SIMACRO to build digital twin solutions that are not just predictive, but physically valid, preventing quality spec deviation caused by incorrect process assumptions.
The Data Paradox: Ensuring Run Reliability in Data-Limited Environments
Speaker: Junwoo Kim (SIMACRO) | Topic: Digital Twin (DT) Development Strategy for Data-Limited Industrial (Bioprocesses)
Junwoo Kim addressed the "Data Paradox" in industrial bioprocesses, where insufficient or costly data frequently leads to poor parameter identifiability and challenges traditional estimation approaches. To solve this, SIMACRO presented a Bayesian Framework to maintain run reliability. This strategy accurately captures substrate accumulation and product inhibition during abnormal/non-routine events, such as contamination, even with limited datasets. By integrating prior kinetic knowledge with real-time observation, SIMACRO identified process disturbances early, ensuring the digital twin remains a reliable guide where standard algorithms fail.
Industrial Excellence: Scaling Innovation from Lab to Production
Speakers: Chi-Woo Lee (Chiral Technology Korea), Eun Kyu Lee (Hanyang Univ.), Min Kyung Kwon & Hangil Park (CJ BIO)
The invited sessions demonstrated the critical role of precision in advancing commercial separation technologies. Chi-Woo Lee emphasized that even small analytical changes can strongly affect purity in polysaccharide-based chiral separations. Professor Eun Kyu Lee addressed the biomanufacturing’s shift toward intensified, flexible, and cost-effective manufacturing, emphasizing Protein A chromatography as essential for managing resin costs in (mAb) production. CJ BIO showcased advancements in amino acid purification using SMB. Their innovative High-Throughput Screening (HTS) system, which secures accurate kinetics using only 5 microliters of sample, enabled the world's first "Natural Cysteine" production line, proving that rigorous science leads to tangible industrial gains.
Visualizing the Future: PMv as the Hub for Operational Stability
Speaker: Ju Weon Lee (SIMACRO) | Topic: Case-Study of SMB in ProcessModel V™ (PMV™)
The talk highlighted how these requirements can be put into practice through the ProcessModel V™ (PMV™) platform. PMV is a web-based service that enables users to leverage sophisticated first principles models without managing the underlying mathematical complexity. By utilizing Triangle Theory, SIMACRO enables operators to visualize the stable operating window of an SMB process in real-time. This is critical during grade transitions, when the risk of producing off-spec material is highest. Rather than relying on trial and error, engineers can now "see" stable boundaries directly on the PMV Canvas, ensuring uninterrupted execution and greater operational confidence.
Completing the Decision with the Dataflow Platform
The 2026 symposium highlighted how combining rigorous scientific foundations with digital flexibility can drive industrial excellence. As Jay Yun concluded, the core differentiator of SIMACRO is the concept of Dataflow. While many organizations focus on the quantity of data, SIMACRO focuses on governing how data moves through first principles models to enable superior engineering judgment. Through PMV, we transform fragmented information into actionable digital assets, ensuring reliable and continuous execution for a sustainable industrial future.
Written by Hongjae Kim; Edited by Angela Park; Photos by Jason Won
Revised on 4/22/2026 - ProcessMetaverse™ (PMv™) has been updated to ProcessModel V™ (PMV™)
SIMACRO Marketing Team | media@simacro.com