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Pharmaceutical Sciences
TABLET COATING INDUSTRY POINT VIEW- A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW
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B.VENKATESWARA REDDY, K. NAVANEETHA, B.RASHMITHA REDDY
Department of Pharmaceutics, St.Paul's College of Pharmacy,
Turakayamjal village, Hayath Nagar Mandal, Ranga Reddy Dist-501510, A.P.
*Corresponding Author Email:
ABSTRACT
Tablet Coating is a process by which an essentially dry, outer layer of coating material is applied to the surface of a
dosage form in order to confer specific benefits over uncoated variety. The advantages of tablet coating are taste
masking, odor masking, physical and chemical protection, protection of the drug from the gastric environment etc.
The important reason to coat a pharmaceutical dosage form is to control the release profile and bioavailability of
the active ingredient. The various techniques of coating such as sugar coating, film coating, enteric coating. The
amount of coating solution applied and the thickness of the coating layer determines the release of the drug from
the delivery system. Tablets are usually coated in conventional coating pans by spraying the coating solution on
the free surface of the tablet bed and subsequent drying of the solution. The main focus of this review is, to study
various key factors associated with coating, , latest techniques of coating such as dip coating, laminated coating,
electrostatic, vacuum film coating and problem encountered during the coating process.
KEY WORDS
Tablet coating, laminated coating, Pharma industry, gastric environment, bioavailability.
c) Immersion-tube system:
• The tube immersed delivers heated
air and
• Coating solution is applied through
spray nozzle built in the tip of tube
a) Pellegrini pan: • The drying air flows upward through
• Has a baffled pan and diffuser for the tablet bed and is exhausted by a
uniform distribution of drying air. conventional duct.
• It is enclosed and automated.
b) Immersion-sword system:
• Drying air is introduced through a B. Perforated pan system: It consists of a
perforated metal sword immersed in Perforated or partially perforated drum that
the tablet bed. rotates on its horizontal axis in an enclosed
• The drying air flows upward through housing.
bed. a) Accela-Coata and Hi-coater system: Drying
• Coating solutions are applied by an air is directed in to drum, is passed through
atomized spray system directed onto bed, and is exhausted through perforations
the tablet bed surface. in to drum.
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b) Driacoater:
• Introduces drying air through hollow
perforated ribs located inside
periphery of the drum.
• As the coating pan rotates, ribs dip
into tablet bed
• Drying air passes up through and
fluidizes the tablet bed
• Exhaust is from the back of the pan.
C. Fluidized bed (Air suspension system):
• These are highly efficient drying systems
• Fluidization of tablet bed is achieved in a
columnar chamber by the upward flow of
drying air.
• The airflow is controlled so that more air
enters the center of the column, causing
the tablets to rise in the center.
• The movement of tablets is upward
c) Glatt coater : through the center of the chamber. They
• Drying air is directed from inside the then fall towards the chamber wall and
drum through the tablet bed and out move downward to re-enter the air stream
an exhaust duct at the bottom of the chamber.
• It consists of an optional split- • Coating solutions are continuously applied
chambered plenum, drying air can be from a spray nozzle located at the bottom
directed in the reverse manner up of the chamber or are sprayed onto the
through the drum perforations for top of the cascading tablet bed by nozzles
partial fluidization of the tablet bed. located in the upper region of the
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• The total surface area per unit weight The safety requirements depending on
decreases significantly from smaller to larger nature of solvent, where explosive or toxic
tablets. concentrations of organic solvents could
• For same thickness of film, smaller tablets occur, during either solution preparation or
requires more coating composition as the coating operation, electrical explosion-
compared with larger tablets proofing, specialized ventilation are
• Size of atomized coating droplets must be required.
smaller and better controlled as the features Exhaust air treatment may be done to
to be coated become smaller. recover solvent or to prevent entry in to
atmosphere.
Equipment efficiency, E: Federal EPA defines limits of organic solvents
Net increase in coated tablet weight and particulate allowed in atmosphere.
Coating Efficiency, E = ---------------------------------------------
Other Equipments needed to support the
Non volatile coating weight applied
to tablets
coating operation are Tanks, filters, mixers,
• Ideally, 90 to 95% of the applied film coating mills, jacketed tanks, portable pressure tanks
should be on the tablet surface. or pumping systems.
• Coating efficiency for conventional sugar
coating is much less and 60% would be Automation
acceptable. It involves the development of a process in
• This significant difference in coating efficiency which all the important variables are
between sugar coating and film coating predetermined.
relates to the quantity of coating material Through a series of sensors and regulating
that accumulates on the pan walls. devices for temperature, airflow, spray rate
• With an efficient film coating process, little and pan speed, a feed back control of the
coating material accumulates on the wall, but process is maintained.
with sugar coating, the pan walls become
thickly covered with coating. TYPES OF COATING PROCESSES
• A common cause of low film coating Three main types of coatings used in the
efficiency is that the application rate is too pharmaceutical industry are
slow for the coating conditions (large tablet • Sugar coating
surface area, high airflow, and high • Compression coating
temperature). • Film coating
• This results in drying part of the coating 1. SUGAR COATING:
composition before it reaches the tablet • It involves successive application of sucrose
surfaces, so that it is exhausted as dust. based coating formulations to tablet core, in
Facility and Ancillary Equipment suitable coating equipment.
The facility required for any coating • Water evaporates from the syrup leaving a
operation should be designed to meet the thick sugar layer around each tablet.
requirements of cGMP. • Sugar coats are often shiny and highly
Adequate space is needed for the coating colored.
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equipment, solution preparation and in- • Typically, tablets are sugar coated by
process storage. panning technique, using traditional rotating
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2. Enteric materials
E.g. CAP, Acrylate Polymers, HPMCP, PVAP.
Stability with coating composition and primary polymeric film former, changes the
drug substrate o Flexibility
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may cause the liquid to quickly fill and be be increased by using higher molecular
retained in the monogram. weight polymers or polymer blends.
Remedies Remedies
• Judicious monitoring of the fluid • Adjusting the plasticizer type and
application rate. concentration can minimize internal
• Thorough mixing of tablets in the pan stresses.
prevent filling. • Adjusting the pigment types and
6. BLISTERING concentration can minimize internal
• Evaporation of solvents from the core in stresses.
the oven. And effect of high temperature
on the strength, elasticity and adhesion CONCLUSION
of the film may results in blistering. In recent decades, coating of pharmaceutical
Remedies dosage forms has been subject of remarkable
• Controlled milder drying conditions. developmental efforts aiming to ensure and
7. HAZING/DULL FILM enhance end product quality. Improvements
• Also called as bloom. regarding particle movement, heat and energy
• It can occur when too high a processing transfer, film distribution, drying efficiency and
temperature is used for a particular continuous processing have contributed to
formulation. Dulling is particularly significantly develop this technology. In future
evident when cellulosic polymers are there is enormous developments has to be done
applied out of aqueous media at high in the area of tablet coating
processing temperature. Also occur if the
coated tablets are exposed to high REFERENCES
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film exceed the tensile strength of the 7. Gupta Ankit,A.et al tablet coating techniques: concepts
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*Corresponding Author:
B.Venkateswara Reddy
Department of Pharmaceutics, St.Paul's College of Pharmacy,
Turakayamjal village, Hayath Nagar Mandal,
Ranga Reddy Dist-501510, A.P.
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