Development and Optimization of a Wet Granulation Process at Elevated Temperature for a Poorly Compactible Drug Using Twin Screw Extruder for Continuous Manufacturing.

The objective of this study was to enhance tabletability of a poorly compactible drug, acetaminophen, by wet granulation using twin screw extruder at high temperature. It was desired that there would be minimum amounts of excipients used and the granules obtained after extrusion would be dry and fall within a size range suitable for tableting without any further processing. Mixtures of acetaminophen (95%) with binders (5% povidone or partially pregelatinized starch) were wet granulated through twin screw extruder at 70°C by adding 7% w/w water. The process had a short granulation time (<1 min), and, on account of the elevated processing temperature used, no drying after extrusion was needed. By optimizing formulation and processing parameters, >90% granules in the size range of 125 to 1000 µm (<3% above 1000 µm and <7% below 125 µm) were obtained without any milling. When the granules were compressed by adding 1% disintegrant and 0.5% lubricant extragranularly, tablets produced (93.6% drug load) had good mechanical strength having hardness >1.7 MPa, which was superior to that of tablets prepared by conventional high shear wet granulation. As the granules could be extruded continuously and did not require drying and milling, the method was amenable to continuous processing.

Application of film-casting technique to investigate drug-polymer miscibility in solid dispersion and hot-melt extrudate.

Determination of drug-polymer miscibility is critical for successful development of solid dispersions. This report details a practical method to predict miscibility and physical stability of drug with various polymers in solid dispersion and, especially, in melt extrudates by applying a film-casting technique. Mixtures of itraconazole (ITZ) with hydroxypropylmethylcellulose phthalate (HPMCP), Kollidon(®) VA 64, Eudragit(®) E PO, and Soluplus(®) were film-casted, exposed to 40°C/75% RH for 1 month and then analyzed using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), powder X-ray diffractometry, and polarized light microscopy (PLM). ITZ had the highest miscibility with HPMCP, being miscible at drug to polymer ratio of 6:4 (w/w). There was a downward trend of lower miscibility with Soluplus(®) (miscible at 3:7, w/w, and a few microcrystals present at 4:6, w/w), Kollidon(®) VA 64 (2:8, w/w) and Eudragit(®) E PO (<1:9, w/w). PLM was found more sensitive to detect drug crystallization than DSC and powder X-ray diffractometry. There was general correlation between results of film casting and hot-melt extrusion (HME) using a twin screw extruder. For ITZ-Soluplus(®) mixtures, HME at 4:6 (w/w) resulted in a single phase, whereas drug crystallization was observed at higher drug load. HME of ITZ-Kollidon(®) VA 64 mixtures also correlated well with the miscibility predicted by film casting.

Effect of carbamazepine on viscoelastic properties and hot melt extrudability of Soluplus ®.

The purpose of this study was to apply viscoelastic properties of polymer and drug-polymer mixtures to determine processing conditions for the preparation of amorphous solid dispersion by melt extrusion. A poorly water-soluble drug, carbamazepine (CBZ), was mixed with Soluplus(®) as the carrier. Torque analysis using a melt extruder was performed at 10, 20 and 30% w/w drug concentrations and the effect of barrel temperature was studied. Viscosity of the mixtures either at fixed temperatures with different angular frequencies or as a function of temperature with the same frequency was studied using a rheometer. The viscosity of Soluplus(®) and the torque exerted on the twin screws decreased with the increase in CBZ concentration. The viscosity versus temperature plots for different CBZ concentrations were parallel to each other, without the drug melting transition, indicating complete drug-polymer miscibility. Thus, the drug-polymer mixtures could be extruded at temperature as low as 140°C with 10% w/w drug load, 135°C with 20% w/w drug and 125°C with 30% w/w drug, which were, respectively, ∼ 50°C, 55°C and 65°C below the melting point of 191°C for CBZ. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses of the binary mixtures extruded at 125-150°C showed absence of crystalline drug. A systematic study of miscibility and extrudability of drug-polymer mixtures by rheological and torque analysis as a function of temperature will help formulators select optimal melt extrusion processing conditions to develop solid dispersions.