Multispectral UV Imaging for Determination of the Tablet Coating Thickness

Anna Novikova, Jens M Carstensen, J Axel Zeitler, Thomas Rades, Claudia S Leopold

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Abstract

The applicability of off-line multispectral UV imaging in combination with multivariate data analysis was investigated to determine the coating thickness and its distribution on the tablet surface during lab-scale coating. The UV imaging results were compared with the weight gain measured for each individual tablet and the corresponding coating thickness and its distribution measured by terahertz pulsed imaging (TPI). Three different tablet formulations were investigated, 2 of which contained UV-active tablet cores. Three coating formulations were applied: Aquacoat® ECD (a mainly translucent coating) and Eudragit® NE (a turbid coating containing solid particles). It was shown that UV imaging is a fast and nondestructive method to predict individual tablet weight gain as well as coating thickness. The coating thickness distribution profiles determined by UV imaging correlated to the results of the TPI measurements. UV imaging appears to hold a significant potential as a process analytical technology tool for determination of the tablet coating thickness and its distribution resulting from its high measurement speed, high molar absorptivity, and a high scattering coefficient, in addition to relatively low costs.

Original languageEnglish
JournalJournal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Volume106
Issue number6
Pages (from-to)1560-1569
Number of pages10
ISSN0022-3549
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2017

Keywords

  • Journal Article

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