Calibration and verification of DEM parameters for the quantitative simulation of pharmaceutical powder compression process
In pharmaceutical industry, a deep understanding on the physical properties of drug substance and excipients is critical for the quality control of solid dose drug product. The purpose of this work is to develop a quantitative simulation calibration and prediction platform to model powder compression by applying the Discrete Element Method (DEM).
Highlights
A quantitative simulation platform was developed to model powder compression.
Influential parameters on the simulation of powder compression were determined.
The platform provides quantitative calibration on compression of single material.
The platform provides quantitative prediction on compression of mixtures.
The Luding elasto-plastic contact model was applied for particle-particle interactions. The loading stiffness, the unloading stiffness ratio, and the particle density (which served by adjusting the bulk volume of a specific mass of particles) were determined as influential parameters in this study. Calibration was established between DEM parameters and compression profile of pharmaceutical powders in a short timeframe. This platform could capture the main compressibility characteristics of pharmaceutical materials and could successfully provide quantitative predictions on compression profiles of mixtures. It was recommended for development of solid dose DP especially when the amount of DS was limited. Continue on calibration and verification of DEM parameters for the quantitative simulation of pharmaceutical powder compression process