Optimization and In-vitro Evaluation of Coating Process for Film-Coated Tablets

Abstract

Abstract The proper efficiency of the tablet-coating process often results in a coating within adequate quality, which might avoid the rejection of the film-coated tablets, minimize the operating expenses and production time. In general, the optimum coating system performance and coating conditions are important for achieving the desirable tablet-coating uniformity and manufacturing reproducibility. In this study, HPMC-aqueous-based tablet film coating successfully conducted in a perforated pan coater for process scale-up using the spray-coating technique. Certain process parameters such as spray rate, inlet air temperature, pan temperature, atomizing pressure as well as pan speed were maintained carefully and the optimum coating quality was achieved with acceptable film performance. At lower initial pan speed, the strength of the coated tablets was remarkably improved and the highest weight gain obtained. The smoothest and uniform film obtained at high spray rate, high pan speed, and low atomizing pressure. The results revealed that the optimum film-coating quality and uniformity achieved at a spray rate of 480 ml/min, atomizing pressure at 5 bar, inlet temperature at 85 to 90 °C, pan temperature at 58 °C, initial pan speed at 1.5 rpm and final pan speed at 4.0 rpm using side-vented pan coater. At initial pan speed of 1.5 rpm, the strength of the coated tablets remarkably improved with minimum edges erosion, which increases the weight gain up to 3.3%w/w.