Parameters determining the agglomeration behavior of anhydrous L-ornithine-L-aspartate (LOLA) crystals prepared by drowning out crystallization

Crystallization of L-ornithine-L-aspartate (LOLA) by drowning out was performed for the production of the anhydrous form of LOLA. The needle-like LOLA crystals were formed and spherically agglomerated during precipitation in a semibatch crystallizer. The primary crystal size in the agglomerate remains unchanged after completion of the crystallization. Therefore, the agglomeration process of primary crystals played an important role for controlling LOLA crystal size. The agglomeration of LOLA crystals was governed by not only the physico-chemical parameters such as the temperature and feed concentration, but also the hydrodynamic parameters such as agitation speed and feeding rate. The crystal size and the shape have been shown to be important factors in product impurity and flowability. Thus, the optimum condition of LOLA crystallization process by drowning-out could be obtained.