Innovation Wednesday: smarter particle size analysis

Correlations between particle size and bioavailability make particle size measurements critical for the pharmaceutical industry. New developments from Malvern Instruments for the Mastersizer 3000 laser diffraction particle size analyzer aim to reduce the analytical workload associated with these important measurements.

A key step in particle sizing is to achieve appropriate sample dispersion, to ensure the relevance of measured data. The Hydro Sight imaging accessory enables real-time visual monitoring of samples as they undergo wet dispersion during a laser diffraction measurement, providing the orthogonal data required to swiftly optimize and validate a method.  The resulting information on particle size, shape and image uniformity provides confirmation of the consistency and extent of dispersion.

The Hydro SV small volume liquid dispersion accessory is designed to enable reliable laser diffraction particle size analysis using just a few milligrams of sample. This extends the capability of the technique in supporting bioavailability and processability assessments during early stage development. The results obtained are comparable with those from the Mastersizer 3000’s larger-volume wet dispersion accessories, supporting efficient method transfer, through product scale-up.