Properties and Applications of Powdered Polysaccharide Acids IV. : Comparison of Carboxymethylcellulose (HCMC) and Cornstarch as Tablet Disintegrants

Abstract

Sulfathiazole tablets were prepared through a compressional force range of 0.25 to 2 tons per tablet. Tablet hardness and disintegration time were compared for carboxymethylcellulose and cornstarch disintegrates through a concentration range of 1 to 30%. The results indicate that hardness and disintegration times were similar for both disintegrants, except at the 30% starch concentration where tablet hardness was very low. Generally, hardness increased rapidly with increase in compressional force and was not depressed appreciably by increased disintegrant concentrations. Disintegration times decreased rapidly with increased disintegrant concentrations. The principal advantages of HCMC in this formulation are that it can be granulated wet with the other tablet components without losing its disintegrant properties upon drying; also, wet granulations employing it dry faster than those without it, and the resultant tablets are somewhat harder than the corresponding tablets containing starch as the disintegrant.