Effect of moisture and pressure on tablet compaction studied with FTIR spectroscopic imaging.

FTIR spectroscopic imaging using a diamond ATR accessory has been applied to examine the influence of moisture and compression pressure on the density and components distribution of compacted pharmaceutical tablets. The model drug and excipient used within this study are ibuprofen and hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC). Chemical images of these compacted tablets were captured in situ without removing the tablet between measurements. A powder mixture of both, drug and excipient, prior to compaction, were subjected to a controlled environment, using a controlled humidity cell. Histograms were plotted to assess the density distribution quantitatively. This FTIR spectroscopic imaging approach enabled both measurement of water sorption and enhanced visualization of the density distribution of the compacted tablets.