Importance of Powder Flow Testing In Industries

Active pharmaceutical ingredients are given in powder form and are crucial concept in Pharma Industry. The better will be the understanding of Powder and its control, the better will be the product and creation of clinically effective products. With advancements in technology, the study of particles and its shape analysis has been transformed to a great extent giving rise to automated image analysis. Modern testing techniques such as shear and bulk property management has made it easy to provide the highest levels of productivity. Therefore, to make high quality product, the Industry must be efficient at Quality by Design. The properties of Powder Flow are cohesive strength, Internal Friction, wall friction, powder compressibility, Permeability, Chute, etc. In order to study these characteristics and flowability of powder, number of testers is available in the market. Various variables like time at rest, Pressure, Temperature, humidity and atmosphere also affect the flowability and proper maintenance of these factors while operating ensures making of quality product without any disruption. Powder flow tester becomes one such equipment which delivers quality fast and easily analyzes the powder flow behavior to allow manufacturers to eliminate the idle time of the machine. Powder analyzers or testers should be used in the way the process is defined to use them. This will allow the problem to be solved properly. The analyzer not only establishes parameters for predicting performance of powder flowability but also tests Powder flowing angle. The process of creating a powder flowing angle is based on evaluating process conditions set under the selected time and rate of rotation. The power of each data point or avalanche is calculated once data points are calculated for various points. A link can also be created where the operator will be able to carry out a number of processes consecutively. This is known as flowability method link which helps the operator in making changes in the powder in proportion to rotation speed. However, during the process of testing or powder processing tribo electrification charge can be created due to equipment’s like micronizers, blenders and sieve stacks. The static earthing solution is the most effective way to combat Powder Electrostatic charge and ensure proper functioning of the equipment. This solution monitors the ground connection of components, measures risk of accumulation of static charge and alerts the personnel to loss of ground connection in case of potential hazard. The method also becomes useful when the ground connection point is not readily visible to the operator; this method helps in combating Powder electrostatic charge. The concept of Powder flow testing and clarity in processing it goes a long way for pharmaceutical industries in earning profit and delivering value to its customers.