Characterization of the hydrodynamics in a miniaturized dissolution apparatus

The hydrodynamics of a miniaturized dissolution apparatus was characterized using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations and analyzed in relation to the biorelevance and robustness of measurements of drug dissolution and precipitation kinetics from supersaturated drug solutions. The effect of using three different agitator geometries operated at 50, 100, 150 and 200 RPM as well as different positioning of an UV probe in the vessel was systematically evaluated. The CFD simulations were validated using a particle streak velocimetry experiment. The results show that the choice of agitator geometry influences the hydrodynamics of the system and indicates that an off-center probe position may result in more robust measurements. Furthermore, the study shows that the agitator geometry has a significant effect on supersaturation studies due to differences in the hydrodynamic shear produced by the agitator.