Analysis of the effect of particle size on polymorphic quantitation by Raman spectroscopy

HSBM-Produced Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles: Physical Properties and Evaluation of Their Antimicrobial Activity against Human Pathogens

This work examines the antibacterial and anticandidal activities of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZNPs) synthesized by high-speed ball milling (HSBM), for short milling times: 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 h. First, ZNPs have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Raman spectroscopy, and the Zetasizer analyzer. The HSBM results in semispherical ZNPs with some local agglomeration. We found that nanoparticles decrease in size continuously with milling time until they reach about 84% of their original size after only two hours; at 1000 rpm, HSBM reduces ZNP's average size by 6 nm/min. As particle size decreases, the X-ray diffracted patterns become broader and less intense while confirming that no phase transformation has occurred, proving HSBM's effectiveness in synthesizing nanoparticles on a large scale within a short period of time. According to FT-IR analysis, as material sizes change, the polarization charge of the ZNP surface changes as well, creating discrepancies in vibrational frequency, as demonstrated by the shifting of the IR spectra in the 300-600 cm^-1 frequency band. Raman responses have also been proven to depend on the particle size. Using the Agar well diffusion method, eleven microorganisms have been tested for the antimicrobial activity of ZNPs. Among the six Gram-negative tested bacteria, S. sonnei showed the largest inhibition zone of about 11.3 ± 0.6 mm with ZNPs measuring 148 nm in size (milled for 2 h), followed by E. coli ATCC 25922. Accordingly, S. aureus was the most susceptible Gram-positive bacteria, with inhibition zone size gradually increasing from 11.8 ± 0.3 mm to 13.5 ± 0.5 mm with decreasing nanoparticle size from 767 to 148 nm, while S. aureus ATCC 25923 was resistant to both milled and unmilled samples. Similar results were seen with candida, all milled ZNPs inhibited C. albicans, followed by C. tropicalis, whereas C. knisei was resistant to all ZNP sizes. In light of microorganism-ZNP interaction mechanisms, the obtained results have been discussed in depth.

Spatially offset Raman scattering line-mapping as a potential tool for particle size analysis

A spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) line-mapping scheme was explored as a tool for the measurement of particle size. The proposed scheme is based on the fact that photon migration in powder packing varies as a function of the reduced scattering coefficient, which is directly related to the particle size of the sample. It is known that a smaller particle yields a larger reduced scattering coefficient. Therefore, recognition of the particle size-dependent photon migration (distribution) could be a means to determine the sample's particle size and SORS is a versatile tool for this purpose. Peak intensities acquired along the SORS mapping line are expected to decrease with an increase of the offset distance and the descending slope of the peak intensity can be translated into particle size, for example, a greater slope (steeper intensity decrease) for smaller particles yielding a narrower (denser) photon distribution. For the study, low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and middle-density PE (MDPE) powders with four particle sizes were measured. In each case, the slope of intensity decrease became less steep with the increase of particle size due to the broader photon distribution. A comparative analysis of LDPE and MDPE spectra found that the slope was steeper in the measurement of MDPE powder since the photon distribution was narrower owing to the high particle density. Together, these findings suggest that the proposed scheme is potentially expandable to measure particle sizes of samples with relevant prior calibration and provide useful information on sample composition also for chemical analysis.

Raman spectroscopy-in situ characterization of reversibly intercalated oxygen vacancies in α-MoO3

This work reports on the in situ strategy to reversibly generate or suppress oxygen vacancies on α-MoO₃ which were probed by Raman spectroscopy. Reversible changes in two features of the α-MoO₃ Raman spectrum could be correlated to the generation of oxygen vacancies: displacement of the T_b band frequency and the intensity decrease of the symmetrical stretching (ν_s) band. These two features could be used to qualitatively describe oxygen vacancies. Raman results also indicate that oxygen vacancies are located in the interlayer region of the α-MoO₃ lattice. This observation is corroborated by in situ X-ray diffraction, which also indicates the absence of nonstoichiometric phase transitions.

This work reports on the in situ strategy to reversibly generate or suppress oxygen vacancies on α-MoO₃ which were probed by Raman spectroscopy.

Chemometrics-assisted solid-state characterization of pharmaceutically relevant materials. Polymorphic substances

Current regulations command to properly characterize pharmaceutically relevant solid systems. Chemometrics comprise a range of valuable tools, suitable to process large amounts of data and extract valuable information hidden in their structure. This review aims to detail the results of the fruitful association between analytical techniques and chemometrics methods, focusing on those which help to gain insight into the characteristics of drug polymorphism as an important aspect of the solid state of bulk drugs and drug products. Hence, the combination of Raman, terahertz, mid- and near- infrared spectroscopies, as well as instrumental signals resulting from X-ray powder diffraction, ¹³C solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and thermal methods with quali-and quantitative chemometrics methodologies are examined. The main issues reviewed, concerning pharmaceutical drug polymorphism, include the use of chemometrics-based approaches to perform polymorph classification and assignment of polymorphic identity, as well as the determination of given polymorphs in simple mixtures and complex systems. Aspects such as the solvation/desolvation of solids, phase transformation, crystallinity and the recrystallization from the amorphous state are also discussed. A brief perspective of the field for the next future is provided, based on the developments of the last decade and the current state of the art of analytical instrumentation and chemometrics methodologies.

Dependence of Raman Spectral Intensity on Crystal Size in Organic Nano Energetics

Raman spectra for various nitramine energetic compounds were investigated as a function of crystal size at the nanoscale regime. In the case of 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20), there was a linear relationship between intensity of Raman spectra and crystal size. Notably, the Raman modes between 120 cm(-1) and 220 cm(-1) were especially affected, and at the smallest crystal size, were completely eliminated. The Raman spectral intensity of octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX), like that of CL-20's, depended linearly on crystal size. The Raman spectral intensity of 1,3,5-trinitroperhydro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX), however, was not observably changed by crystal size. A non-nitramine explosive compound, 2,4,6-triamino-1,3,5- trinitrobenzene (TATB), was also investigated. Its spectral intensity was also found to correlate linearly with crystal size, although substantially less so than that of HMX and CL-20. To explain the observed trends, it is hypothesized that disordered molecular arrangement, originating from the crystal surface, may be responsible. In particular, it appears that the thickness of the disordered surface layer is dependent on molecular characteristics, including size and conformational flexibility. Furthermore, as the mean crystal size decreases, the volume fraction of disordered molecules within a specimen increases, consequently, weakening the Raman intensity. These results could have practical benefit for allowing the facile monitoring of crystal size during manufacturing. Finally, these findings could lead to deep insights into the general structure of the surface of crystals.

Raman spectroscopy in pharmaceutical product design

Almost 100 years after the discovery of the Raman scattering phenomenon, related analytical techniques have emerged as important tools in biomedical sciences. Raman spectroscopy and microscopy are frontier, non-invasive analytical techniques amenable for diverse biomedical areas, ranging from molecular-based drug discovery, design of innovative drug delivery systems and quality control of finished products. This review presents concise accounts of various conventional and emerging Raman instrumentations including associated hyphenated tools of pharmaceutical interest. Moreover, relevant application cases of Raman spectroscopy in early and late phase pharmaceutical development, process analysis and micro-structural analysis of drug delivery systems are introduced. Finally, potential areas of future advancement and application of Raman spectroscopic techniques are discussed.

Quantitative Macro-Raman Spectroscopy on Microparticle-Based Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms

Quantitative macro-Raman spectroscopy was applied to the analysis of the bulk composition of pharmaceutical drug powders. Powders were extracted from seven commercial lactose-carrier-based dry-powder inhalers: Flixotide 50, 100, 250, and 500 μg/dose (four concentrations of fluticasone propionate) and Seretide 100, 250, and 500 μg/dose (three concentrations of fluticasone propionate, each with 50 μg/dose salmeterol xinafoate ). Also, a carrier-free pressurized metered-dose inhaler of the same combination product, Seretide 50 (50 μg fluticasone propionate and 25 μg salmeterol xinafoate per dose) was tested. The applicability of a custom-designed dispersive macro-Raman instrument with a large sample volume of 0.16 μL was tested to determine the composition of the multicomponent powder samples. To quantify the error caused by sample heterogeneity, a Monte Carlo model was developed to predict the minimum sample volume required for representative sampling of potentially heterogeneous samples at the microscopic level, characterized by different particle-size distributions and compositions. Typical carrier-free respirable powder samples required a minimum sample volume on the order of 10(-4) μL to achieve representative sampling with less than 3% relative error. In contrast, dosage forms containing non-respirable carriers (e.g., lactose) required a sample volume on the order of 0.1 μL for representative measurements. Error analysis of the experimental results showed good agreement with the error predicted by the simulation.

Matrix Effects in Quantitative Assessment of Pharmaceutical Tablets Using Transmission Raman and Near-Infrared (NIR) Spectroscopy

Raman spectroscopy can be an alternative to near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) for nondestructive quantitative analysis of solid pharmaceutical formulations. Compared with NIR spectra, Raman spectra have much better selectivity, but subsampling was always an issue for quantitative assessment. Raman spectroscopy in transmission mode has reduced this issue, since a large volume of the sample is measured in transmission mode. The sample matrix, such as particle size of the drug substance in a tablet, may affect the Raman signal. In this work, matrix effects in transmission NIR and Raman spectroscopy were systematically investigated for a solid pharmaceutical formulation. Tablets were manufactured according to an experimental design, varying the factors particle size of the drug substance (DS), particle size of the filler, compression force, and content of drug substance. All factors were varied at two levels plus a center point, except the drug substance content, which was varied at five levels. Six tablets from each experimental point were measured with transmission NIR and Raman spectroscopy, and their concentration of DS was determined for a third of those tablets. Principal component analysis of NIR and Raman spectra showed that the drug substance content and particle size, the particle size of the filler, and the compression force affected both NIR and Raman spectra. For quantitative assessment, orthogonal partial least squares regression was applied. All factors varied in the experimental design influenced the prediction of the DS content to some extent, both for NIR and Raman spectroscopy, the particle size of the filler having the largest effect. When all matrix variations were included in the multivariate calibrations, however, good predictions of all types of tablets were obtained, both for NIR and Raman spectroscopy. The prediction error using transmission Raman spectroscopy was about 30% lower than that obtained with transmission NIR spectroscopy.

In situ monitoring of powder blending by non-invasive Raman spectrometry with wide area illumination

A 785nm diode laser and probe with a 6mm spot size were used to obtain spectra of stationary powders and powders mixing at 50rpm in a high shear convective blender. Two methods of assessing the effect of particle characteristics on the Raman sampling depth for microcrystalline cellulose (Avicel), aspirin or sodium nitrate were compared: (i) the information depth, based on the diminishing Raman signal of TiO(2) in a reference plate as the depth of powder prior to the plate was increased, and (ii) the depth at which a sample became infinitely thick, based on the depth of powder at which the Raman signal of the compound became constant. The particle size, shape, density and/or light absorption capability of the compounds were shown to affect the "information" and "infinitely thick" depths of individual compounds. However, when different sized fractions of aspirin were added to Avicel as the main component, the depth values of aspirin were the same and matched that of the Avicel: 1.7mm for the "information" depth and 3.5mm for the "infinitely thick" depth. This latter value was considered to be the minimum Raman sampling depth when monitoring the addition of aspirin to Avicel in the blender. Mixing profiles for aspirin were obtained non-invasively through the glass wall of the vessel and could be used to assess how the aspirin blended into the main component, identify the end point of the mixing process (which varied with the particle size of the aspirin), and determine the concentration of aspirin in real time. The Raman procedure was compared to two other non-invasive monitoring techniques, near infrared (NIR) spectrometry and broadband acoustic emission spectrometry. The features of the mixing profiles generated by the three techniques were similar for addition of aspirin to Avicel. Although Raman was less sensitive than NIR spectrometry, Raman allowed compound specific mixing profiles to be generated by studying the mixing behaviour of an aspirin-aspartame-Avicel mixture.

Quantitative analysis of powder mixtures by Raman spectrometry: the influence of particle size and its correction

Particle size distribution and compactness have significant confounding effects on Raman signals of powder mixtures, which cannot be effectively modeled or corrected by traditional multivariate linear calibration methods such as partial least-squares (PLS), and therefore greatly deteriorate the predictive abilities of Raman calibration models for powder mixtures. The ability to obtain directly quantitative information from Raman signals of powder mixtures with varying particle size distribution and compactness is, therefore, of considerable interest. In this study, an advanced quantitative Raman calibration model was developed to explicitly account for the confounding effects of particle size distribution and compactness on Raman signals of powder mixtures. Under the theoretical guidance of the proposed Raman calibration model, an advanced dual calibration strategy was adopted to separate the Raman contributions caused by the changes in mass fractions of the constituents in powder mixtures from those induced by the variations in the physical properties of samples, and hence achieve accurate quantitative determination for powder mixture samples. The proposed Raman calibration model was applied to the quantitative analysis of backscatter Raman measurements of a proof-of-concept model system of powder mixtures consisting of barium nitrate and potassium chromate. The average relative prediction error of prediction obtained by the proposed Raman calibration model was less than one-third of the corresponding value of the best performing PLS model for mass fractions of barium nitrate in powder mixtures with variations in particle size distribution, as well as compactness.

Quantifying Solid-State Mixtures of Crystalline Indomethacin by Raman Spectroscopy Comparison with Thermal Analysis

This paper investigates Raman spectroscopy as a quick and reliable method to quantify the alpha (α) and gamma (γ) polymorphic forms of indomethacin compared to differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Binary mixtures with different ratios of α and γ indomethacin were prepared and analyzed by Raman and DSC. The Raman method was found to be more reliable and superior compared to DSC. The partial conversion of the alpha to gamma polymorphic form during the DSC measurement was the major limitation for the use of full DSC as a quantitative method and resulted in difference between the calculated and measured enthalpy of both polymorphic forms.

Raman and fluorescent scattering matrix of spherical microparticles

In this paper, we have investigated the main properties of the Raman and fluorescent matrix of scattering by microspheres using the matrix scattering formalism. The coherent and incoherent inelastic scattering of incident light by a microsphere is described by the Stokes parameters. We demonstrate the main symmetry properties of the coherent and incoherent Raman and fluorescent scattering matrices. Numerical results are presented to illustrate the Raman scattering efficiency, cross-phase coefficient, and some other parameters of scattering by microspheres.

Near infrared and Raman spectroscopy for the in-process monitoring of pharmaceutical production processes

Within the Process Analytical Technology (PAT) framework, it is of utmost importance to obtain critical process and formulation information during pharmaceutical processing. Process analyzers are the essential PAT tools for real-time process monitoring and control as they supply the data from which relevant process and product information and conclusions are to be extracted. Since the last decade, near infrared (NIR) and Raman spectroscopy have been increasingly used for real-time measurements of critical process and product attributes, as these techniques allow rapid and nondestructive measurements without sample preparations. Furthermore, both techniques provide chemical and physical information leading to increased process understanding. Probes coupled to the spectrometers by fiber optic cables can be implemented directly into the process streams allowing continuous in-process measurements. This paper aims at reviewing the use of Raman and NIR spectroscopy in the PAT setting, i.e., during processing, with special emphasis in pharmaceutics and dosage forms.

Determination of the crushing strength of intact tablets using Raman spectroscopy

In the present study, the Raman spectroscopy technique was used as a non-invasive, rapid analytical method for measuring the crushing strength of tablets. The compressed tablets were individually detected, using Raman spectroscopy, and the respective crushing strength values were measured, using a tablet hardness tester as a reference method. The tablets were compressed from a granule mass containing theophylline anhydrate as an active substance. For measuring the crushing strength of the tablets, Raman spectra were recorded from the tablets. Partial least squares (PLS) regression models were constructed to obtain information from the spectra. The correlation between measured and predicted crushing strength values for the tablets was shown to be very favorable. With Raman spectroscopy, shifting of the baseline was observed as the crushing strengths of tablets (and the smoothness of the tablet surface) were increased. Consequently, correlation between the crushing strength data on the present tablets and Raman spectra was observed. Multiple scanning electron (SEM) and non-contact laser profilometry (LP) micrographs from the surfaces of the tablets were taken to describe the surfaces and applied as supportive information for the proposed spectroscopy approach. In conclusion, Raman spectroscopy is a promising alternative for established off-line/at-line tablet-testing methods for some tablet formulations.