Excipients in your mix

Today we’re going to talk about the different excipients in a tablet mix. Knowing how excipients work is really important when making a tablet mix. It will help you understand how to overcome potential issues when making your mix such as helping it flow through your press or helping your tablets bind together.

Here are the most common excipients used in tablet mixes:

Di-Calcium Phosphate. A commonly used filler, this ingredient ensures your tablets have uniform content and increases compressing capabilities that will assist with a mix that needs extra help flowing. Di Cal shouldn’t be used with any acidic actives.

The Di-Calcium phosphate LFA sells is known as a “directly compressible” version which is suitable for tableting.

Magnesium Stearate is what we call a dry lubricant. A white, water insoluble powder that reduces the friction at the point of contact between your tablets surface and the die wall during production reducing any damage to your new tablets. It will prevent your formula from sticking to the machine. When a tablet is compressed, the powder is pushed out to the die wall which causes the tablet to get stuck inside, magnesium stearate will coat the granules inside your mix and assist your tablet being pushed out easier.

Lactose can be a really good binder due to its granule size and flowability. The reason not everyone will use Lactose, firstly because of an issue known as “fines” and secondly because of lactose intolerance which you may not want to deal with in your product so may not be suitable for many supplements or health based products.

 

Microcrystalline Cellulose or MCC. This is your tablets binder as well as being an excellent binder it’s insoluble and acts as a disintegrant so will release the tablets actives on contact with moisture.

MCC is a naturally occurring polymer that is a great additive in pharmaceutical, food, cosmetic and other industries.

 

If your product is having a hard time sticking together, say if it's crystalline, if its a product that falls apart easily then you’ll want to add some MCC.

Silicon Di Oxide: It acts as a glidant, which will improve flow qualities but still promotes quick tableting.

Silicon dioxide is an inert ingredient. This means it won’t react with the other ingredients you are using or substances in the body. It makes both manufacturing and digestion easier.

This ingredient will also reduce trace quantities of moisture which can damage your machines over time.