Dispersion forces and plastic deformation in tablet bond

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Pharmaceutical Engineering
• Physical Chemistry

Background:

• Tablet bond formation is critical in pharmaceutical manufacturing.
• Understanding the forces governing tablet strength is essential for product quality.
• Existing models may not fully capture the complex deformation processes during compression and decompression.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a quantitative model for tablet bond formation.
• To investigate the role of dispersion forces and plastic deformation in tablet strength.
• To estimate the bonding index based on material properties and compression parameters.

Main Methods:

• Developed a model based on dispersion forces and spherical curvature of surfaces.
• Utilized Hertz's equation for elastic deformation during decompression.
• Calculated the number of contact points and area per contact point based on particle size, hardness, and solid fraction.
• Estimated the bonding index using the derived equation.

Main Results:

• The model successfully estimated bonding indices within the lower range of experimental values.
• The model highlights the dependence of surface curvature radius on plastic deformation during compression.
• The study suggests plastic deformation during decompression significantly contributes to higher bonding indices.

Conclusions:

• The developed model provides a framework for understanding tablet bond formation.
• Dispersion forces play a key role, but plastic deformation during decompression is crucial for high tablet strength.
• Non-dispersion forces may contribute but are unlikely to be the primary factor for materials with high bonding indices.