Non-contact Laser Interferometer Method to Characterize Tablet Punches: New Methodology to Assess Surface Roughness.

Sticking to tablet punches is a major issue during drug product manufacturing. Research has shown that sticking involves the interrelationship of powder properties, compression force, length of manufacturing runs and punch quality. Here, we present a novel non-destructive methodology to study the surface metrology of punches to monitor them over their lifetime. This investigation used a non-contact laser interferometer to characterise roughness of commercial standard S7 steel punches coated with chrome that were originally used for commercial scale production that developed a sticking issue. During the development, this phenomenon had not been observed and was not considered a scale-up risk. The profilometer was used to examine the complete surface of these punches to investigate whether they met the acceptability criteria based on BS_ISO_18804 tooling standard. To improve data analysis during changeover, a 3D-printed holder was designed to enable analysis with minimal set-up requirements. Upon investigation, the punches were found to be of an unacceptable roughness and, particularly rough areas of the punch surface profiled, correlated well with areas of visually pronounced sticking. This non-destructive method can be used to produce a more detailed characterisation of punch roughness to ensure surfaces are of an acceptable quality after treatment with coatings.

Monitoring of multiple solvent induced form changes during high shear wet granulation and drying processes using online Raman spectroscopy.

Form changes during drug product processing can be a risk to the final product quality in terms of chemical stability and bioavailability. In this study, online Raman spectroscopy was used to monitor the form changes in real time during high shear wet granulation of Compound A, a highly soluble drug present at a high drug load in an extended release formulation. The effect of water content, temperature, wet massing time and drying technique on the degree of drug transformation were examined. A designed set of calibration standards were employed to develop quantitative partial least square regression models to predict the concentration of each drug form during both wet granulation and the drying process. Throughout all our experiments we observed complex changes of the drug form during granulation, manifest as conversions between the initial non-solvated form of Compound A, the hemi-hydrate form and the "apparent" amorphous form (dissolved drug). The online Raman data demonstrate that the non-solvated form converts to an "apparent" amorphous form (dissolved drug) due to drug dissolution with no appearance of the hemi-hydrate form during water addition stage. The extent of conversion of the non-solvated form was governed by the amount of water added and the rate of conversion was accelerated at higher temperatures. Interestingly, in the wet massing zone, the formation of the hemi-hydrate form was observed at a rate equivalent to the rate of depletion of the non-solvated form with no change in the level of the "apparent amorphous" form generated. The level of hemi-hydrate increased with an increase in wet massing time. The drying process had a significant effect on the proportion of each form. During tray drying, changes in drug form continued for hours. In contrast fluid bed drying appeared to lock the final proportions of drug form product attained during granulation, with comparatively small changes observed during drying. In conclusion, it was possible to simultaneously monitor the three forms in real time during wet granulation and drying using online Raman spectroscopy. The results regarding the effect of process parameters on the degree of transformation are critical for designing a robust process that ensures a consistent form in the final drug product.

Investigation into process-induced de-aggregation of cohesive micronised API particles.

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of unit processes on the de-aggregation of a cohesive micronised API within a pharmaceutical formulation using near-infrared chemical imaging. The impact on the primary API particles was also investigated using an image-based particle characterization system with integrated Raman analysis. The blended material was shown to contain large, API rich domains which were distributed in-homogeneously across the sample, suggesting that the blending process was not aggressive enough to disperse aggregates of micronised drug particles. Cone milling, routinely used to improve the homogeneity of such cohesive formulations, was observed to substantially reduce the number and size of API rich domains; however, several smaller API domains survived the milling process. Conveyance of the cone milled formulation through the Alexanderwerk WP120 powder feed system completely dispersed all remaining aggregates. Importantly, powder feed transmission of the un-milled formulation was observed to produce an equally homogeneous API distribution. The size of the micronised primary drug particles remained unchanged during powder feed transmission. These findings provide further evidence that this powder feed system does induce shear, and is in fact better able to disperse aggregates of a cohesive micronised API within a blend than the blend-mill-blend step.

The use of in situ near infrared imaging and Raman mapping to study the disproportionation of a drug HCl salt during dissolution.

NIR imaging and Raman mapping of the dissolution of model pharmaceutical formulations containing the HCl salt of a developmental compound, were carried out using a custom designed flow through cell. The results of this work have shown that NIR imaging and Raman mapping are capable of monitoring the distribution of the components in a formulation during dissolution while also revealing any form changes which may occur in real time. The NIR and Raman data revealed that the drug underwent conversion to the free base when water was used as the dissolution medium. However, in 0.1M HCl this conversion was no longer seen as the medium was below the pHmax (the pH of saturation of both unionised and ionised species and above which the free base can form) of the drug. The data from both approaches broadly agreed demonstrating the applicability of these methods to studying and enhancing our understanding of the complex physical and chemical processes which occur during dissolution in real time.

Evaluating drug delivery with salt formation: Drug disproportionation studied in situ by ATR-FTIR imaging and Raman mapping.

Two different vibrational spectroscopic approaches, ATR-FTIR spectroscopic imaging and Raman mapping, were used to investigate the components within a tablet containing an ionised drug during dissolution experiments. Delivering certain drugs in their salt form is a method that can be used to improve the bioavailability and dissolution of the poorly aqueous soluble materials. However, these ionised species have a propensity to covert back to their thermodynamically favourable free acid or base forms. Dissolution experiments of the ionised drug in different aqueous media resulted in conversion to the more poorly soluble free acid form, which is detrimental for controlled drug release. This study investigates the chemical changes occurring to formulations containing a development ionised drug (37% by weight), in different aqueous pH environments. Firstly, dissolution in a neutral medium was studied, showing that there was clear release of ionised monosodium form of the drug from the tablet as it swelled in the aqueous medium. There was no presence of any drug in the monohydrate free acid form detected in these experiments. Dissolution in an acidic (0.1M HCl) solution showed disproportionation forming the free acid form. Disproportionation occurred rapidly upon contact with the acidic solution, initially resulting in a shell of the monohydrate free acid form around the tablet edges. This slowed ingress of the solution into the tablet before full conversion of the ionised form to the free acid form was characterised in the spectroscopic data.

Dissolution of tablet-in-tablet formulations studied with ATR-FTIR spectroscopic imaging.

This work uses ATR-FTIR spectroscopic imaging to study the dissolution of delayed release and pH resistant compressed coating pharmaceutical tablets. Tablets with an inner core and outer shell were constructed using a custom designed compaction cell. The core of the delayed release tablets consisted of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) and caffeine. The shell consisted of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) and glucose. The core of the pH resistant formulations was an ibuprofen and PEG melt and the shell was constructed from HPMC and a basic buffer. UV/vis spectroscopy was used to monitor the lag-time of drug release and visible optical video imaging was used as a complementary imaging technique with a larger field of view. Two delayed release mechanisms were established. For tablets with soluble shell sections, lag-time was dependent upon rapid shell dissolution. For tablets with less soluble shells, the lag-time was controlled by the rate of dissolution medium ingress through the shell and the subsequent expansion of the wet HPMC core. The pH resistant formulations prevented crystallization of the ibuprofen in the core during dissolution despite an acidic dissolution medium. FTIR imaging produced important information about the physical and chemical processes occurring at the interface between tablet sections during dissolution.

Application of FTIR spectroscopic imaging to study the effects of modifying the pH microenvironment on the dissolution of ibuprofen from HPMC matrices.

This work presents the novel application of attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic (ATR-FTIR) imaging to study the dissolution of ibuprofen form tablets in which the internal pH of the matrix has been modified by addition of acidic and basic powders to the formulations. Acidic additives to the matrix retarded the dissolution of crystalline ibuprofen domains. Basic additives formed both soluble and insoluble salts with the ibuprofen depending on the pH modifier added. Tablets consisting of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, ibuprofen, and an acidic or basic additive were studied. FTIR imaging in ATR mode was used for analysis of water ingress into the tablet and the presence, distribution, and chemical state of the drug. The FTIR imaging data showed distinct changes in the dissolution of crystalline ibuprofen between the formulations with different pH modifiers. In the basic formulations, FTIR imaging identified the formation of salts. The sodium salt formed was highly soluble and enhanced dissolution, whereas the calcium salt was highly insoluble and slowed the dissolution. FTIR imaging has produced important data concerning the internal matrix dissolution performance.