Granulation Processes Flashcards
What is granulation?
- size enlargement process for the capsules that involves binder liquid.
- original constituents can still be identified even with the physical change.
What are the advantages of granulation?
- improve flowability
- reduce segregation tendency
- improve compactibility
- reduce dust
What are the different methods of granulation?
- direct compression
- dry granulation
- thermoplastic granulation
- wet granulation
What are the characteristics of direct compression?
- sometimes referred to as dry granulation
- suitable for preparing free flowing powders for tableting
- involves mixing and blending without the need to increase particle size
- minimal segregation and good compressibility
What are the characteristics of dry granulation?
- also known as slugging
- used to compress pre-mix into large tablets or slugs (25mm or larger), which are poor quality tablets
What is a common technique used for dry granulation, and how does it work?
roller compaction (capable of continuous production)
- Homogeneously mixed powder blend is passed between two counter-rotating rollers.
- Compact is formed, and can be milled into granules.
What are some advantages of roller compaction?
- fewer unit processes required thus lower production cost
- suitable for heat and/or water-sensitive materials
- feasible process for preparing controlled release products
What are some of the bonding mechanisms in dry graulations?
- particle rearrangement
- particle fragmentation
- particle bonding
What are some factors affecting compact strength?
- applied pressure
- extent of air entrapment (improve process by vacuum system)
- roll dwell time
- powder void fraction (space into which air is compacted)
- particle size of component and density
- type of binders included
- moisture content of material
What are the characteristics of wet granulation?
- most widely used technique
- possible for almost any powder or mixture of powders provided that are stable to moisture and heat.
- hardness and solubility can be controlled with the appropriate binders and granulating agents.
- non-aqueous agents can be used for water sensitive materials.
What are the advantages of wet granulation?
- improve flow properties
- reduce bulk volume, densification
- improve compression properties
- improve distribution of a minor constituent (e.g. low dose drug, binder, colorant)
- prevent components from segregating
- reduce dust
- minimise or mitigate adverse effects of API
What are the disadvantages of wet granulation?
- additional processing steps, more tedious and adds cost
- unsuitable for moisture-sensitive or thermolabile drugs
- material loss due to additional processing steps
What are the steps for wet granulation (small scale)?
- Addition of granulating liquid to API and excipients generates a moistened mass.
- Moistened mass passes through screen to form exudates
- Exudates are dried at 60 degree celsius to form dried exudates
- Dried exudates are re-granulated through screen to give granules and lubricant.
- Granules and lubricant are compacted to form tablets
Describe agglomerate growth.
- happens during wet granulation process with agitation, when an equilibrium exists between crushing and coalescence.
- if the equilibrium favours the coalescence mechanism, the agglomerate grows.
Describe liquid saturation.
- liquid saturation refers to the ratio of the pore volume occured by the liquid : total volume of pores within the agglomerate.
- unsaturated, 3-phase system: air, liquid and solid
- saturated, 2-phase system: liquid and solid