A Comparative Evaluation of the Flow and Compaction Characteristics of α-Cellulose obtained from Waste Paper

Purpose: Alpha-cellulose obtained as pulp from fibrous plant materials has found use in the pharmaceutical industry as a disintegrant and direct compression diluent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the suitability of α-cellulose obtained from waste paper as a direct compression excipient.
Method: The flow and compaction characteristics of α-cellulose (ACP) obtained from waste paper, in comparison with Avicel PH 101, using the Kawakita and Heckel models were evaluated.
Result: The results indicate that the flow properties of these materials could not be predicted accurately using the Kawakita model. A comparison of compression behaviour and compactibility of the two powders showed Avicel PH 101 to be a slightly better binder.
Conclusion: It was concluded that ACP material could find use as a potential dry binder and direct compression diluent in tableting as the binding properties were comparable to those of Avicel PH 101.

Keywords
Alpha-cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, flow and compaction characteristics, direct compression diluent.