Tribology test design for friction measurements with application to oral medicines

Abstract

In recent years tribology tests have been used to measure friction properties of oral consumables such as semi-solid foods and medicines. The tests aim to simulate thin-film mastication conditions and are intended to correlate with mouth feel or food texture properties. In this paper a new approach is proposed to better simulate shear conditions, fluid supply and friction data capture associated with mastication and swallowing. Two primary changes are suggested: these are the reduction of the inlet influence on lubricant film properties and the ability to measure transient and time-dependent friction. The new test was used to measure friction for a range of oral medicines including a viscous solution (cough syrup) and particulate suspensions (paediatric, calcium carbonate) in combination with an artificial saliva (mucin solution), The tongue-palate was replicated by a PCX glass lens loaded and reciprocating against a textured silicone surface. A short stroke length, comparable to the Hertzian diameter of the contact, was used so the contact operated in a partially replenished lubrication condition. This ensured the film in the contact region has the same composition as the bulk fluid. Friction was measured continuously during reciprocation for up to 5 cycles (comparable to mastication time) and data was sampled at 100 Hz to capture transient friction. Tests were run with and without a mucin layer present. The results showed that tests performed after 20 min adsorption of an artificial saliva solution reduced the friction coefficient from μ = 1 to μ = 0.2–0.3. Tests with the paracetamol suspensions, which contain hard particles, recorded transient friction spikes which were not recorded for the softer calcium carbonate suspensions. Key conclusions for the design of pertinent simulation tests are that the film properties in the oral cavity are not determined by the inlet as for classical lubrication. The (bulk) oral sample is captured in the tongue-palate contact and not continually replenished. When sheared it will exhibit time (transient, longer-term) and speed dependent friction responses which contribute to sensory and texture perception.