Granulation Flashcards
Purpose of wet granulation
improve flow properties
reduce bulk volume, densification
improve compression properties
improve distribution of minor constituent
prevent components from segregating
reduce dust
minimise or mitigate adverse properties of API
Disadvantages of wet granulation
additional processing steps, adds complexity, cost, extra validation work
additional time and space needed
unsuitable for moisture-sensitive or thermolabile drugs
material loss due to additional processing steps
Why is direct compression (dry granulation) used:
most effective and efficient method to prepare free flowing powders for tableting, mix and blend, without additional step to increase particle size
no need addition of additional materials
Criteria needed for dry granulation:
suitable flow
narrow size distribution
minimal segregation
good compressibility
Steps for dry granulation:
Slugging
Roller compaction
Definition of slugging:
Powdered tableting premix blended well and compressed into large tablets/slugs of 25mm or larger
Generally poor quality tablets: wide variety in weight and harness due to poor flow of premix into dies
How are slugs processed:
milled and sieved into suitable sized fractions
collected as granules for tableting
Fines may be slugged again
Roller compaction:
efficient dry granulation process – used for continuous production
Homogenously mixed powder blend passed between two counter rotating rotating rollers and compact is formed (flake, ribbon, briquette)
Compaction roll:
patterned surface grips material better – can cause slight difference in density
if there is too much pressure, rollers will mov e slightly apart
Major advantages of roller compaction:
Fewer unit processes, lower production cost
suitable for heat and/or water sensitive materials
feasible for preparing controlled release products
Bonding mechanisms in dry granulations:
Particle rearrangement: particle shape and size are key factors
Particle fragmentation: bond formation at higher compression loads – creates multiple new surfaces and increase points of contact and thus potential bonding sites
Particle bonding: occurs at molecular level – usually by van der waal forces and hydrogen bonding
Factors affecting compact strength of granules formed by roll compaction:
Applied pressure
extent of air entrapment
roll dwell time: time where 90% of force is applied
Powder void fraction: space into which air is compacted
particle size of component and density
type of binders used
moisture content of material
Wet granulation
most widely used, possible for almost any powder/mixture produced provided they are stable to moisture/heat
How is hardness controlled in wet granulation:
Using suitable grinders and granulating agents
non aqueous liquids can be used for water sensitive materials
Purpose of wet granulation:
increase flow properties
decrease bulk volume, densification
Increase compression properties
increase distribution of minor constituents – low dose drug, binder, colorant
Prevent components from segregating
decrease dust
minimise/mitigate adverse properties of API
Disadvantages of wet granulation:
additional processing steps, add complexity, cost, extra validation work –> more regulation needed
Additional time and space needed
unsuitable for moisture sensitive/thermolabile drugs
Material loss due to additional processing steps – the more processes, the more raw materials lost – cost advantage lost
Agglomerate growth:
equilibrium exists between crushing and coalescence
- Stronger agglomerates coalease in collision to form bigger ones
- weaker agglomerates often crushed – fragments will be picked up by larger agglomerates by layering process
Liquid saturation:
ratio of pore volume occupied by liquid to total volume of pores within agglomerate – impt to study granulation process
Effects of densification:
increase liquid saturation and surface plasticity – promote agglomerate growth by coalescence
- as agglomerate becomes denser, becomes more resistant to breakdown due to attrition
Increasing liquid saturation beyond maximum will increase surface plasticity: water need to be at surface to make it surface active
Done by liquid addition/densification
Particle size of primary compounds:
Smaller particles require higher amount of binder liquid than larger particle:
- Harder to densify due to higher packing density
- constant agglomerate size, total primary particles’ surface area larger when formed by larger particles