Physicochemical properties of magnesium salicylate

Magnesium salicylate tetrahydrate is a nonhygroscopic, crystalline powder, whereas anhydrous magnesium salicylate is amorphous and very hygroscopic. Magnesium salicylate tetrahydrate tablets formulated with gelatin as a binder showed a dissolution half-life (t1/2) of 12 min, whereas a formulation using pregelatinized starch as a binder showed a t1/2 of 33 min. The optimum level of calcium stearate in the formulation was determined by the oscilloscope tracings of compressional and ejectional forces from an instrumented rotary tableting machine. Increasing the level of calcium stearate from 1 to 1.5 and 2% resulted in dissolution t1/2 values of 12, 18, and 21 min, respectively, and a higher incidence of softer tablets and capping.