Scaling up of Rifampicin Nanoprecipitation Process in Microfluidic Devices

Abstract

Microfluidic devices have become an important tool to produce micro and nanoparticles. However, the operation ranges of these systems are still a challenge when we think of large scale industrial applications. In this work we present two microfluidic devices for scaling up a nanoprecipitation process. The microfluidic systems are microfabricated in glass substrates and the flow distribution are done through reservoirs and a branching system, with four outputs in each device. In these systems we can operate in mL/min range and it is possible to have a yield up to ten times higher than a single channel system. We use the devices in a rifampicin nanoprecipitation process, obtaining nanoparticles in a range of 250 nm. As expected, parameters such as total flow rate and ratio between phases are determinant in the final mean particle size. Each output of our devices produces homogenous results and we can see that these results can be improved to obtain nanoparticles in larger volumes.