Particle-size analysis of pharmaceutical powders

An automated electrolytic sensing zone (electrozone) method was developed to determine the particle-size distribution of milled and micronized pharmaceutical powders. The powdered drugs obeyed log-normal statistics, and the distributions were well defined by thier geometric volume mean diameter and the geometric standard deviation. The results show that accurate data can be obtained between 2 and 80 micron with a precision of approximately 0.5 micron. Pulse-width analyses were performed to determine the feasibility of using a pulse-width discrimination program. However, in this case, the program discriminates against real particles and, therefore, its usefulness is limited. Milled and micronized materials are described adequately by a spherical diameter, and the automated electrozone system described is an excellent method for quality control purposes.