Influence of filler selection on twin screw foam granulation.

The influence of filler selection in wet granulation was studied for the novel case where the binder is delivered as an unstable, semi-rigid aqueous foam to an extrusion process. The work primarily examined the impact of differing concentrations of microcrystalline cellulose (Avicel PH® 101) in a formulation with spray-dried α-lactose monohydrate (Flowlac® 100) in regards to wetting and granule nucleation for this relatively new technique known as continuous foam granulation. Foam stability was varied within the work to change its drainage and coarsening behavior atop these powder excipients, by use of different foamable binding agents (METHOCEL™ F4 PLV and METHOCEL™ Premium VLV) as well as by adjusting the foam quality. A static bed penetration test was first used to study the foam behavior in wetting these powders without the processing constraints of an extruder which limit possible liquid-to-solids ratios as well as introduce shear which may complicate interpretation of the mechanism. The test found that the penetration time to saturate these powders decreased as their water absorption capacity increased which in turn decreased the size of the formed nuclei. Differences in the stability of the foamed binder had minimal influence on these attributes of wetting despite its high spread-to-soak behavior. The size of granules produced by extrusion similarly demonstrated sensitivity to the increasing water absorption capacity of the filler and little dependency on foam properties. The different liquid-to-solids ratios required to granulate these different formulations inside the extruder highlighted an evolving concept of powder lubricity for continuous foam granulation.

Foam granulation: new developments in pharmaceutical solid oral dosage forms using twin screw extrusion machinery.

This paper investigates foam granulation in a twin screw extruder as a new continuous wet granulation technique for pharmaceutical powder drug formulations. Foamed aqueous binder has a reportedly lower soak-to-spread ratio than drop or spray liquid addition in batch granulation. This work demonstrates a twin screw extruder configuration for foam granulation and subsequently compares the new approach against liquid injection in the granulation of α-lactose monohydrate with a methylcellulose binder. Trials were conducted at high powder output rates (20-40 kg/h) and high screw speeds (220-320 RPM) with two screw configurations. Process stability improved with the new technique allowing granulation with less binder. The extruded mass maintained a low exit temperature, being insensitive to operating conditions unlike the liquid injection approach, where temperatures rose significantly as flow rate increased. The particle size distribution by foam granulation reflected a more uniformly wetted mass with larger granule growth noted even for conditions where dry powder exited by liquid injection. Other factors were found similar between the two binder delivery methods such as consumed mechanical energy, as well as fracture strength and compressibility of produced granules.