Characteristics of Tableted Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn.) with Addition of Sodium Starch Glycolate

The focus of this research is to study the characteristics of tablets produced from the binary powder mixture of Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn.) and sodium starch glycolate (SSG) powders. The experimental parameters studied were the compaction pressure and the mass composition. The findings indicated that the increase of compaction pressure increased the tensile strength of tablets until a limiting value was reached. On the other hand, as the compaction pressure increased, the porosity of tablets decreased to a minimum value. The elastic recovery of tablets slightly decreased in some results. The increase in compaction pressure also increased the dissolution time of tablets up to a maximum value. The increase of SSG composition decreased the tensile strength of tablets to a certain amount. The dissolution time of tablets also reduced when the percentage of SSG increased. Subsequently, under the same compaction conditions, the increase of SSG composition increased the porosity and the elastic recovery of tablets until the limiting values were achieved.     

Diametrical Elastic Relaxation During Ejection of Lactose-Cocoa Binary Tablets

This work investigates the diametrical elastic relaxation of a compacted binary powder mixture of lactose and cocoa. It has been observed that the addition of lactose improved the mechanical strength of the binary tablets at the higher compaction stresses used in this study. The tablets having the maximum tensile strengths have relatively low diametrical elastic relaxations, similar to the pure cocoa tablets. Meanwhile, pure lactose tablets displayed increasing diametrical elastic relaxations as the compaction stress increased.     

A study of the compaction process and the properties of tablets made of a new co-processed starch excipient

This article deals with the study of the energetic relationships during compaction and the properties of tablets produced from a co-processed excipient based on starch and called StarCap 1500?. This article compares it with the substance Starch1500?. The study also includes the mixtures of StarCap 1500? and the granulated directly compressible lactose Pharmatose DCL?15. The tablet properties tested included tensile strength and disintegration time, examined in dependence on compression force, and also a 0.4% addition of magnesium stearate. The results show a better compressibility of StarCap 1500 in comparison with Starch 1500 and a lower elastic component of energy. The tablets were stronger and disintegrated more rapidly, but the substance possessed a higher sensitivity to an addition of a lubricant than Starch 1500. Increasing portions of StarCap 1500 in the mixtures with Pharmatose DCL 15 increased the tensile strength of tablets, disintegration period as well as the sensitivity to an addition of a lubricant. From the energetic viewpoint, energy for friction was decreasing, while the energy accumulated by the tablet during compaction and the elastic component of energy were increased.     

Compaction Properties of Spheronized Binary Granular Mixtures

Two spheronized granular formulations containing 20% anhydrous lactose/80% microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) and 80% anhydrous lactose/20% microcrystalline cellulose were blended in various proportions and compressed. Physical-mechanical properties of the resulting compacts were investigated using tableting indices and compared with powder mixtures of the same compositions. The compacts were compressed at a solid fraction of 0.80 for both powder and bead mixtures. An additional set of bead compacts were made at a solid fraction of 0.87. The thickness of the compacts was measured in the post-ejection stage to investigate their expansion behavior. The tensile strength with and without a stress concentrator and the dynamic indentation hardness of the compacts were determined. The brittle fracture index (BFI) and bonding index (BI) values were also calculated. The microstructure of the beads and compacts were investigated using scanning electron microscopy to observe the bonding phenomena. The results showed that the compacts made from beads underwent different compaction/consolidation behaviors than the powders of the same lactose/MCC compositions. For powdered compacts, the tensile strength with or without a stress concentrator increased with increasing MCC content while the compacts made from beads showed the opposite trend. However, this trend was not seen in the indentation hardness test. The resulting BFI values were all low due to the plastic nature of the materials selected. The BI values of the bead and powder compacts also exhibited opposite tendencies and reflected the divergent mechanical properties of the materials presented in granulated and powdered forms. Microstructure studies revealed the bonding states between the beads in the compacts. Discrepancies in mechanical properties were related to the compressibility, compactibility, and porosities of the excipients studied.     

Fracture analysis of dissimilar Al‐Al friction stir welded joints under tensile/shear loading

In this research, fracture of dissimilar friction stir welded (FSWed) joint made of Al 7075‐T6 and Al 6061‐T6 aluminum alloys is investigated in the cracked semi‐circular bend (CSCB) specimen under mixed mode I/II loading. Due to the elastic‐plastic behavior of the welded material and the existence of significant plastic deformations around the crack tip at the propagation instance, fracture prediction of the FSWed specimens needs some failure criteria in the context of the elastic‐plastic fracture mechanics which are very complicated and time‐consuming. For this purpose, the Equivalent Material Concept (EMC) is used herein by which the tensile behavior of the welded material is equated with that of a virtual brittle material. By combining EMC with the 2 brittle fracture criteria, namely the maximum tangential stress (MTS) and mean stress (MS) criteria, the load‐carrying capacity (LCC) of the FSWed CSCB specimens is predicted. Comparison of the experimental results and theoretical predictions from the 2 criteria showed that both criteria could accurately predict the LCC of the cracked specimens. Moreover, as the contribution of mode II loading increases, the size of the plastic region around the crack tip at failure increases, leading to increasing the LCC.     

Finite element analysis of vickers indentation cracking processes in brittle solids using elements exhibiting cohesive post-failure behaviour

The cracking processes during the indentation test of brittle solids is simulated by means of the finite element method (FEM) using elements exhibiting cohesive post-failure behaviour and alumina as the model material. The results show that at low indentation loads, median cracks could nucleate at full loading but Palmqvist cracks only nucleate in the unloading stage and that they may not join up even after full unloading. Such cracks are stable as they are embedded in a region of high hydrostatic compression throughout the indentation test. At high indentation loads, both median and Palmqvist cracks nucleate early during the loading stage and coalesce to form a half-penny crack on further loading. Although the cracks are embedded in a region of high hydrostatic compression during loading, an annular tensile region eventually develops in between the cracked material beneath the indenter and the surrounding uncracked material during the unloading stage of the macro-indentation. This not only provides the driving force for existing cracks to grow but also new crack systems to form. The present work shows that for brittle solids with negligible plastic deformation, the mismatch in elastic recovery between the cracked and uncracked bodies on unloading plays an important role in indentation fracture processes.     

A study of the compaction process and the properties of tablets made of a new co-processed starch excipient

This article deals with the study of the energetic relationships during compaction and the properties of tablets produced from a co-processed excipient based on starch and called StarCap1500^®. This article compares it with the substance Starch1500^®. The study also includes the mixtures of StarCap 1500^® and the granulated directly compressible lactose Pharmatose DCL^®15. The tablet properties tested included tensile strength and disintegration time, examined in dependence on compression force, and also a 0.4% addition of magnesium stearate. The results show a better compressibility of StarCap 1500 in comparison with Starch 1500 and a lower elastic component of energy. The tablets were stronger and disintegrated more rapidly, but the substance possessed a higher sensitivity to an addition of a lubricant than Starch 1500. Increasing portions of StarCap 1500 in the mixtures with Pharmatose DCL 15 increased the tensile strength of tablets, disintegration period as well as the sensitivity to an addition of a lubricant. From the energetic viewpoint, energy for friction was decreasing, while the energy accumulated by the tablet during compaction and the elastic component of energy were increased.     

缝合式三维编织C/SiC复合材料拉伸加卸载力学行为

本文通过开展缝合式三维编织C/SiC复合材料的准静态单轴拉伸及循环加卸载试验,研究加卸载行为对复合材料的损伤及材料内部能量耗散的影响。通过对材料的断口分析,探究加卸载对材料破坏强度的影响规律。结果表明,加卸载行为会消耗材料内部的能量,对纤维束与基体之间的界面造成损伤,进而降低材料的承载能力;材料滞回曲线的面积随着卸载点应力的增大而增大;材料的整体失效属于脆性破坏,复合材料断口表现出明显的分层现象,且单轴拉伸时断口相对于循环加卸载更整齐。      

Tensile strength and bonding in compacts: a comparison of diametral compression and three-point bending for plastically deforming materials

The tensile strength of tablets is frequently used as a measure of the bonding achieved during compaction. Tablets from two plastically deforming materials and one brittle material have been subjected to tensile strength testing using diametral compression and three-point bending. The plastically deforming materials exhibited marked inhomogeneities, with the surfaces of the tablets considerably more compact than the inner material. The results from the two tests were different, with the three-point bending test giving higher results for tensile strength. The rate of change of tensile strength with overall tablet porosity was, however, the same for the two tests. Diametral compression would thus appear to give a reasonable estimate of bonding despite the non-homogenous nature of tablets prepared from plastically deforming materials.     

Analysis of densification mechanisms of dry granulated materials

Dry granulation by roll compaction is a continuum manufacturing process to produce granules with improved flowability which can further be easily used in tableting process. However, the granules are non-homogeneous in density and have non-spherical shapes which impact their densification behaviour during die-compaction. The aim of this study was to investigate both the densification mechanism and the failure strength of granules of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) and mannitol using Cooper-Eaton and Adams models. For both materials, the Cooper-Eaton approach led to the quantification of fractional volume compaction by particle rearrangement and by plastic deformation respectively to explain the difference in densification behaviour of raw material and granules. Moreover, the model showed its ability to capture the effect of granule density and granule sizes and to differentiate the densification mechanisms of MCC as a plastic material and mannitol as a brittle material. The Adams model was used to compute the failure strength of single granule from in-die compression data. The obtained results of the granules were in the range [0.6–1.43 MPa]. However, regarding the effect of granule density, the model showed mixed results indicating that the model is not representative of the studied granules which are not spherical and have a relatively wide range of sizes, nevertheless, the model was derived for near spherical particles with a narrow size distribution.     

Comparison Studies on the Percolation Thresholds of Binary Mixture Tablets Containing Excipients of Plastic/Brittle and Plastic/Plastic Deformation Properties

Percolation theory has been used with great interest in understanding the design and characterization of dosage forms. In this study, work has been carried out to investigate the behavior of binary mixture tablets containing excipients of similar and different deformation properties. The binary mixture tablets were prepared by direct compression using lactose, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Eudragit RS 100, and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC). The application of percolation theory on the relationships between compactibility, P_max, or compression susceptibility (compressibility), γ, and mixture compositions reveals the presence of percolation thresholds even for mixtures of similar deformation properties. The results showed that all mixture compositions exhibited at least one discreet change in the slope, which was referred to as the percolation threshold. The PVC/Eudragit RS100 mixture compositions showed significant percolation threshold at 80% (w/w) PVC loading. Two percolation thresholds were observed from a series of binary mixtures containing similar plastic deformation materials (PVC/MCC). The percolation thresholds were determined at 20% (w/w) and 80% (w/w) PVC loading. These are areas where one of the components percolates throughout the system and the properties of the tablets are expected to experience a sudden change. Experimental results, however, showed that total disruption of the tablet physical properties at the specified percolation thresholds can be observed for PVC/lactose mixtures at 20–30% (w/w) loading while only minor changes in the tablets' strength for PVC/MCC or PVC/Eudragit RS 100 mixtures were observed.     

The effect of spray drying on the compaction properties of hypromellose acetate succinate

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the compaction behavior of a model two-component amorphous spray-dried dispersion system compared with the unprocessed excipients, using simulated rotary tablet press production conditions. Method: In this study, the stabilizing polymer, hypromellose acetate succinate (HPMCAS), was solubilized and spray dried with and without sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). The impact of compression force and speed on the tabletting process was quantified by means of tablet tensile strength, compaction energy, and Heckel analysis. Results: Addition of the surfactant SLS, spray dried or as a physical mix, reduced the tablet strength. However, a lesser impact on the unprocessed excipients was observed in comparison with the spray-dried excipients. In the presence of 1% (w/w) SLS, tablets displayed a tendency to cap when compressed at higher speeds, supported by high elastic energy values indicating high uniaxial stress upon decompression. In the presence of 3% (w/w) SLS, tablets could not be produced at high speeds. Heckel analysis revealed a greater strain rate sensitivity of HPMCAS when spray dried in the presence of surfactant. Exposure of samples to a range of relative humidities before compaction had no effect on tablet strength. Conclusion: This study has shown that spray drying of HPMCAS in the presence of a surfactant affects the compressibility of the material, resulting in decreased tablet strength, increased elastic deformation, and capping.     

Comparison studies on the percolation thresholds of binary mixture tablets containing excipients of plastic/brittle and plastic/plastic deformation properties

Percolation theory has been used with great interest in understanding the design and characterization of dosage forms. In this study, work has been carried out to investigate the behavior of binary mixture tablets containing excipients of similar and different deformation properties. The binary mixture tablets were prepared by direct compression using lactose, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Eudragit RS 100, and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC). The application of percolation theory on the relationships between compactibility, P_max, or compression susceptibility (compressibility), γ, and mixture compositions reveals the presence of percolation thresholds even for mixtures of similar deformation properties. The results showed that all mixture compositions exhibited at least one discreet change in the slope, which was referred to as the percolation threshold. The PVC/Eudragit RS100 mixture compositions showed significant percolation threshold at 80% (w/w) PVC loading. Two percolation thresholds were observed from a series of binary mixtures containing similar plastic deformation materials (PVC/MCC). The percolation thresholds were determined at 20% (w/w) and 80% (w/w) PVC loading. These are areas where one of the components percolates throughout the system and the properties of the tablets are expected to experience a sudden change. Experimental results, however, showed that total disruption of the tablet physical properties at the specified percolation thresholds can be observed for PVC/lactose mixtures at 20-30% (w/w) loading while only minor changes in the tablets' strength for PVC/MCC or PVC/Eudragit RS 100 mixtures were observed.     

Effect of Particle Size on Direct Compaction of Urea Fertilizer

The effect of particle size on compaction properties and characteristics of urea tablets manufactured from available urea granules (TG tablets) and ground urea powders (TP tablets) was investigated. The compaction properties, namely, plastic work, elastic work, friction work, and maximum ejection pressure were analyzed from the force-displacement profile of the compaction process. Five applied pressures ranging between 37.67 MPa and 188.35 MPa were used to compact the materials using a universal testing machine. Characteristics of the tablets tested were mechanical strength and the release of ammonium ion through dissolution test. The results demonstrated that TG tablets underwent high plastic work and elastic work but low friction work compared to the TP tablets. TG tablets released lower amount of ammonium ion compared to the TP tablets at almost all applied pressures, except at 75.34 MPa. This study provides a valuable data for evaluating the behavior of urea in the form of granules and powders during the compaction process as well as the suitability in choosing the form of raw material for the production of urea tablets.     

Brazilian disk test and digital image correlation: a methodology for the mechanical characterization of brittle materials

In this paper, an optimized and reliable approach for the evaluation of the mechanical properties of brittle materials is proposed and applied to the characterization of geopolymer mortars. In particular, the Young’s modulus, the Poisson’s ratio and the tensile strength are obtained by means of a Brazilian disk test combined with the digital image correlation (DIC) technique. The mechanical elastic properties are evaluated by a special routine, based on an over-deterministic method and the least square regression, that allows to fit the displacement fields experienced by the samples during the experiment. Error sources, like center of the disk location and rigid-body motion components, were analyzed and estimated automatically with the proposed procedure in order to perform an accurate evaluation of the elastic constants. The strain field measured by DIC and the computed elastic properties were then used to perform a local stresses analysis. This latter was exploited to investigate the failure mechanisms and to evaluate the tensile strength of the investigated material and the obtained data were compared with those predicted by the ASTM and ISMR standards. Three different loading platens (flat, rod and curved) were adopted for the Brazilian test in order to evaluate their effect on the elastic properties calculation, on the failure mechanisms and tensile strength evaluation. Results reveal that the curve platens are the most suitable for the tensile strength calculation, whereas the elastic properties did not show any influence from the loading configuration. Furthermore, the proposed procedure, of easy implementation, allows to accurately calculate Young’s modulus, Poisson’s ratio and the tensile strength of brittle materials in a single experiment.     

Influence of granulating method on physical and mechanical properties, compression behavior, and compactibility of lactose and microcrystalline cellulose granules

The physical and mechanical properties of lactose (LC) and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) granules prepared by various granulating methods were determined, and their effects on the compression and strength of the tablets were examined. From the force-displacement curve obtained in a crushing test on a single granule, all LC granules appeared brittle, and MCC granules were somewhat plastically deformable. Intergranular porosity ε_inter clearly decreased with greater spherical granule shape for both materials. Decrease in intragranular porosity ε_intra enhanced the crushing force of a single granule F_g. Agitating granulation brought about the most compactness and hardness of granules. In granule compression tests, the initial slope of Heckel plots K₁ appeared closely related to ease of filling voids in a granule bed by the slippage or rolling of granules. The reciprocal of the slope in the succeeding step 1/K₂ in compression of MCC granules indicated positive correlation to F_g, while in LC granules, no such obvious relation was evident. 1/K₂ differed only slightly among granulating methods. Tensile strength of tablets T_t obtained by compression of various LC granules was low as a whole and was little influenced by granulating method. For MCC granules, which are plastically deformable, tablet strength greatly depended on granulation. Granules prepared by extruding or dry granulation gave strong tablets. Tablets prepared from granules made by the agitating method showed particularly low T_t. From stereomicroscopic observation, the contact area between granule particles in a tablet appeared smaller; this would explain the decrease in intergranular bond formation.     

Microstructure and mechanical properties of Cu and Cu-Zn alloys produced by equal channel angular pressing

Ultrafine-grained (UFG) Cu and Cu-Zn alloy were prepared using equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) to investigate the effects of stacking fault energy (SFE) on microstructure evolution and mechanical properties. Combining with the previous researches, the grain refinement process of ECAP is divided into three stages based on the variation of tensile strength and plasticity. According to the influences of defects on strength and ductility during plastic deformation, the three stages are discussed in detail by considering the dislocation density, grain and twin boundaries. Besides, the impact of SFE on the strength and ductility of the UFG Cu-Zn alloys are evaluated, indicating that these two mechanical properties can be improved simultaneously in the whole ECAP process either through slightly or widely adjusting the SFE. This significant effect of SFE reflects in two aspects, one is in the microstructure evolution during ECAP processing and the other is in the subsequent tensile plastic deformation, both of which can be achieved through regulating the dislocation motion via changing the SFE.     

Properties of strain hardening ultra high performance fiber reinforced concrete (UHP-FRC) under direct tensile loading

Enhanced matrix packing density and tailored fiber-to-matrix interface bond properties have led to the recent development of ultra-high performance fiber reinforced concrete (UHP-FRC) with improved material tensile performance in terms of strength, ductility and energy absorption capacity. The objective of this research is to experimentally investigate and analyze the uniaxial tensile behavior of the new material. The paper reviews and categorizes a variety of tensile test setups used by other researchers and presents a revised tensile set up tailored to obtain reliable results with minimal preparation effort. The experimental investigation considers three types of steel fibers, each in three different volume fractions. Elastic, strain hardening and softening tensile parameters, such as first cracking stress and strain, elastic and strain hardening modulus, composite strength and energy dissipation capacity, of the UHP-FRCs are characterized, analyzed and linked to the crack pattern observed by microscopic analysis. Models are proposed for representing the tensile stress–strain response of the material.     

Changes in the specific surface area of tablets composed of pharmaceutical materials with various deformation behaviors

Objective: The aim of this work is to study the effect of compaction on the specific surface area of tablets composed of various pharmaceutical materials (microcrystalline cellulose, lactose, and anhydrous calcium phosphate) compacted under seven degrees of compaction pressure. Methods: In a first part, the influence of the deformation behavior of the compacted materials on the evolution of the specific surface area is observed. In a second part, the brittle and ductile abilities of the materials are calculated using the specific surface area values. The experimental results are used to calculate the number and the force of interparticulate bonds inside the tablet.Results and Discussion: Tablets made of microcrystalline cellulose, which deform plastically, have specific surface areas that fall under pressure. In the case of lactose, the tablet specific surface area first increases to reach a maximum value at a pressure of 150 MPa. At higher pressure, however, the specific surface area decreases. The specific surface area of tablets composed of anhydrous calcium phosphate consistently increases, whatever the compaction pressure applied. Moreover, the evolution of the specific surface area is correlated with the tensile strength of the corresponding tablets. The number and the force of interparticulate bonds make it possible to classify the materials according to their deformation behavior and to quantify their ability to form cohesive tablets.     

The Tensile Strength of Tablets of Binary Mixtures Lubricated with Magnesium Stearate

Abstract

The influence of magnesium stearate on the tensile strength of tablets prepared from binary mixtures of materials lubricated with magnesium stearate have been studied. Mixtures of which both components (lactose and Emcompress) compact by fragmentation are largely unaffected. For a mixture of materials with dissimilar compaction mechanisms, (lactose and sodium chloride) magnesium stearate has a significant effect in that the originally high tensile strength of the sodium chloride is reduced to the level of lactose and the strengths of the mixtures and independent of the proportion of the components.