Influence of formulation and process parameters on the properties of Cu2+/alginate particles prepared by external ionic gelation evaluated by principal component analysis.

Currently, the method of external ionic gelation for the preparation of alginate particles is successfully used not only in the field of pharmacy and medicine, but also especially in the field of biotechnology. Therefore, the preparation of alginate particles and their subsequent evaluation using principal component analysis was the key task of our experiment. To optimize this method, we focused on the evaluation of the effect of formulation (the polymer concentration, the hardening solution concentration) and process parameters (the outer diameter of the injection needle) on the properties of the resulting beads (yield, sphericity factor, equivalent diameter and swelling capacity at pH 6). Using multivariate data analysis, the major influence on the resulting properties of the prepared particles was confirmed only in sodium alginate concentration. Obtained results verified the reliable and safe potential of the external ionic gelation for preparation alginate-based particulate dosage forms.