Granule Particle Size and Tablet Properties

We investigated the effect of the tablet properties on the granule particle size of the SR layer [17 (link)]. A stereo binocular microscope (SMZ18 Contact Scope, Nikon, Tokyo, Japan) and scanning electron microscope (SEM, MIRA3LMH, Tescan, Brno-Kohoutovice, Czech Republic) were used to confirm the differences in particle size of the granules used for each formulation. The flowability of the mixture of each formulation prepared using the three manufacturing methods was calculated using Carr’s index (CI) [18 (link)]. The bulk and tap densities were measured using a graduated measuring cylinder. The bulk density is defined as the mass of many particles in the powder sample divided by their total occupied volume. The tap density was obtained after mechanically tapping a graduated measuring cylinder containing the powder sample. The flowability formula is shown below. A CI value of ≥25 indicates poor flowability, whereas a CI value of ≤15 indicates good flowability.
$$Car{r}^{\prime }s Index=\frac{\mathrm{Tap} \mathrm{density}-\mathrm{Bulk}\mathrm{density}}{\mathrm{Tap}\mathrm{density}}$$
An in-process control was performed for each prepared tablet. Hardness was measured using a Screw Test Stand (ALX-J, Wenzhou Tripod Instrument Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Wenzhou, China) in units of kilopond (kp). The tableting pressure was confirmed by measuring the tableting pressure of the tableting machine in units of kilonewtons.