Accepted Manuscript

The characterization and dissolution performances of spray dried solid dispersion of

Ketoprofen in hydrophilic carriers
Siok-Yee Chan, Yin-Ying Chung, Xin-Zi Cheah, Eryn Yen-Ling Tan, Joan Quah
PII:

S1818-0876(15)00038-0

DOI:

10.1016/j.ajps.2015.04.003

Reference:

AJPS 128

To appear in:

Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences

Received Date: 12 January 2015

Revised Date:

6 April 2015

Accepted Date: 23 April 2015

Please cite this article as: Chan S-Y, Chung Y-Y, Cheah X-Z, Yen-Ling Tan E, Quah J, The
characterization and dissolution performances of spray dried solid dispersion of Ketoprofen in
hydrophilic carriers, Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences (2015), doi: 10.1016/j.ajps.2015.04.003.
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Graphical Abstract

The characterization and dissolution performances of spray dried

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solid dispersion of Ketoprofen in hydrophilic carriers

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Siok-Yee Chan*, Yin-Ying Chung, Xin-Zi Cheah, Eryn Yen-Ling Tan, Joan Quah

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School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Pulau Pinang, Malaysia

Solid dispersion of ketoprofen and hydrophilic polymer were prepared by using spray drying.
Unexpected result was seen with the fully amorphous dispersion whereby the dissolution rate
was slower than its pure ketoprofen alone. This is intriguing as the result suggests

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insignificant of amorphicity in the dissolution enhancement of solid dispersion. Possible

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mechanism of poor dissolution rate of solid dispersion is proposed in the graphic below:

Upon dissolution, hydrophilic polymer dissolve rapidly, leave the API stranded in the midst of
dissolution medium. The high mobility of the drug molecules agglomerates and this leads to
the reduction of effective surface area, A. Consequently, overall dissolution rate of the solid
dispersion is slowed down.

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Title page

The characterization and dissolution performances of spray dried solid

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dispersion of Ketoprofen in hydrophilic carriers

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Siok-Yee Chan*, Yin-Ying Chung, Xin-Zi Cheah, Eryn Yen-Ling Tan, Joan Quah

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School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Pulau Pinang, Malaysia

Corresponding author:

Mailing address:

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Corresponding author: Siok-Yee Chan *

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Universiti Sains Malaysia

11800 Pulau Pinang,
Malaysia.

Telephone: +604-6532233
Email: sychan@usm.my

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Abstract:

Solid dispersion is one of the most promising strategies to improve oral bioavailability of

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poorly soluble API. However, there are inconsistent dissolution performances of solid
dispersion reported which entails further investigation. In this study, solid dispersions of
Ketoprofen in three hydrophilic carriers, i.e. PVP K30, PVPVA 6:4 and PVA were prepared

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and characterized. Physical characterization of the physical mixture of ketoprofen and carriers
shows certain extent of amorphization of the API. This result is coinciding to evaluation of

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drugpolymer interaction using ATR-FTIR whereby higher amorphization was seen in

samples with higher drug-polymer interaction. XRPD scanning confirms that fully amorphous
solid dispersion was obtained for SD KTP PVP K30 and PVPVA system whereas partially
crystalline system was obtained for SD KTP PVA. Interestingly, dissolution profiles of the

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solid dispersion had shown that degree of amorphization of KTP was not directly proportional
to the dissolution rate enhancement of the solid dispersion system. Thus, it is concluded that
complete amorphization does not gurantee dissolution enhancement of an amorphous solid

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dispersion system.

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Keywords: Solid dispersion, Amorphous, Polymer, PVP, PVPVA, Ketoprofen

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1. Introduction

Today, many newly identified active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) are classified as

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low solubility, which give rise to a low bioavailability when administered orally. These APIs
are usually classified as BCS Class II or Class IV, where solubility is the limiting step for
absorption. There are many strategies introduced to increase the solubility and bioavailability

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of BCS Class II or Class IV compounds. These include particle size reduction, formation of
salt, formation of co-crystal, inclusion complex with cyclodextrin, amorphization and

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formation of solid dispersion [1, 2]. Solid dispersion is one of the most promising strategies to
improve oral bioavailability of poorly soluble API [2, 3]. The preparation of solid dispersion
involves formation of eutectic mixture of drugs with their carriers either via melting or fusion
through solvent evaporation of their physical mixtures [4].

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Conventional concept of a successful production of solid dispersion is related to the

formation of amorphous solid dispersion (ASD). It is a metastable solid state that possesses
higher solubility as compared to their corresponding crystalline structure. When amorphous

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solid dispersion is exposed to aqueous media such as distilled water or gastric fluid, the
polymer which acts as a carrier will be dissolved, thus the API can be released as very fine,

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colloidal particles from the solid dispersion dosage form. The increase in surface area of the
API as a result of molecularly dispersed or also known as amorphous dispersion is claimed to
be one of the main reasons which results in an increased dissolution rate of drug, hence
increasing the bioavailability of drug. Besides, polymeric system in the solid dispersion has
been reported to facilitate the dissolution process. This phenomenon is detailed in a review by
Craig Duncan whereby two types of dissolution process of solid dispersion were identified [5].
On one hand, the carrier shall be able to completely dissolve the API before it could be fully

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released into the bulk. On the other hand, due to the low solubility of API in polymer, the
hydrophilic polymer is wetted but the API would release intact in its highly soluble form
(such as amorphous state) without dissolution into the carrier. In the former case, dissolution

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process is considered as carrier dependent whereas the latter case is termed as drug dependent
dissolution process in which the physical properties of the drug is the determinant of the
overall dissolution performance. In this theory, solubility of an API in a polymeric system is a

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crucial parameter which leads to the vast study of solid solubility of API in polymeric system
in the recent years [6, 7]. In addition to solubilisation effect of the polymeric carrier, high

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molecular weight of the polymer carrier could also kinetically stabilize amorphous state of
API through interaction with API. Examples of polymer in which the stabilization of API are
proven include PVP, HPMC and HPMC phthalate [8-10]. Furthermore, polymers also inhibit
recrystallization of amorphous drug in solid dispersion, thus forming a stable ASD [1, 2] .

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Hence, it is theorized that the formation of fully amorphous solid dispersion would enhance
the dissolution rate and solubility of the formulated API.
Among the vast publications under the umbrella of solid dispersion, appallingly, a few

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reports have revealed inconsistent dissolution performances of fully amorphous solid

dispersion (SD) with the limited discussion emphasis on the said issue [11-15]. Only one cited

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paper has highlighted the issue by naming the observed dissolution performance of its
investigated SD as anomalous dissolution behaviour [14]. Moreover, in the recent years,
despite the high prevalence of publication on the subject of SD, inconsistence dissolution
phenomenon of SD system is under reported, possibly due to the success led publication.
Even though this issue seems minor as it was shown in only a few cited papers, however, the
ignorant of this inconsistency together with the limited knowledge in tackling the underlying
causes of this inconsistency would lead to production of a SD product that fail the quality

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assurance. This may further cause the drainage of effort and investment in the manufacturing
of SD at large scale. Therefore, more investigations are urgently needed in this realm to fill in
the knowledge gap in the thorough understanding of the real performances of ASD.

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In order to unfold the possible underlying causes of the dissolution inconsistency of SD,
in the current study, the aspect of carrier was focused on. Here, three hydrophilic polymers
were used as a carrier in the preparation of spray dried solid dispersion, i.e. PVP K30, PVPVA

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6:4 and PVA. PVP K30 and PVPVA 6:4 are both amorphous polymers. These polymers are
widely used in the production of solid dispersion due to the good stabilizing effect on the

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production of ASD [8-10]. Many have reported the dissolution enhancement of API by using
both PVP and PVPVA as carrier systems, even though PVPVA has reported to be slightly
more hydrophobic than PVP [16, 17]. On the other hand, PVA is a water soluble crystalline
polymer, with a high value of viscosity at 4%, i.e. 40mPa.s. These three polymers are chosen

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based on the ability in the production of different amorphicity SD system, in order to relate
the amorphicity to dissolution performances of the SD of a poorly soluble drug, i.e.

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Ketoprofen.

Ketoprofen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug of the propionic acid derivative

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group that is used for relief of pain and inflammation, treatment of rheumatoid arthritis,
osteoarthritis and other muscle and joint conditions [18-21]. It is classified as BCS class II
compound with no previous report of polymorphic forms. It possesses a low theoretical glass
transition temperature (Tg) at circa -5 to -6 oC [22] which may present alteration of molecular
mobility at biological temperature during dissolution of its amorphous form. Its poor
solubility and low Tg characteristic renders it to be a suitable model of poorly soluble API in
the current study. Here, ketoprofen is formulated into amorphous solid dispersion by utilizing
spray drying method, accompanied with polymers of amorphous property such as
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PVPVA

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6:4, PVP K30 and polymers of crystal property such as PVA. The resultant solid dispersions
of ketoprofen were characterized and relate to their dissolution performances correspondingly.

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2. Materials and methods

2.1. Materials

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The raw Ketoprofen (KTP) was purchased from AFINE Chemical LTD, BN: 1102017.
Three hydrophilic polymers were chosen as the carrier systems in the current study, i.e.

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Polyvinylpyrrolidone K30 (PVPK30), Vinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer Kollidon

VA 64 (PVPVA) and Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). Both Polyvinylpyrrolidone K30, Kollidon
30 (average MW 40,000) and Vinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer Kollidon VA 64
were generous gifts from BASF distributed via ELITE ORGANIC SDN.BHD. Polyvinyl

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alcohol was obtained from BDH Laboratory, England.

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2.2. Preparation of physical mixture and spray dried solid dispersion

There are a few solution-based technologies to produce an amorphous solid dispersion,

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such as precipitation by addition of antisolvents, mechanical activation, hot melt extrusion,

freeze drying and spray drying [1]. In this study, spray drying method was adopted due to the
utilization of gentle temperatures and little exposure time as compared to other methods such
as hot melt extrusion [23]. To produce an amorphous solid dispersion, this method works by
constantly dividing a liquid stream into very fine droplets through atomization process. The
droplets then reach the glass compartment and contact with hot gas, thus get dried into fine
particles, which are then separated from the drying gas and collected into a chamber.

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Total of 5.0g of KTP and polymer mixtures in 30% KTP loading were prepared using
50% v/v ethanol in water. The spray-dried solid dispersion products were prepared using a
Buchi mini-spray dryer B-290, with operating parameters set at: inlet temperature 80C;

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outlet temperature 60C; feed rate 5ml/min; aspirator 100C. It is worth emphasizing that the
inlet temperature used shall not be exceeding 80oC in order to control the outlet at circa 60oC
so to avoid the transition of the resultant solid into its semisolid state in the collecting

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chamber. This is crucial because of the low theoretical Tg of the mixture which will undergo
solid transition process if it was kept in a temperature higher than its Tg (theoretical Tg of the

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mixtures are calculated in section 3.3, Table 4). The yield obtained was approximately
40-50%.

On the other hand, physical mixture (PM) of KTP and polymers were prepared by

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trituration mixing of the weighed powders (30% KTP in polymer) with a mortar and pestle.

2.3. Characterization of the spray-dried KTP-polymer solid dispersions

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Solid state characterization of the prepared solid dispersions and physical mixtures of
KTP and polymer were carried out by scanning in X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD),

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Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Attenuated total reflectance- Fourier transform
infrared (ATR -FTIR).
2.3.1 XRPD analysis

X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRPD) analysis of raw materials, PMs and solid dispersion
were performed with a XRPD, Bruker D8 Advance equipped with a copper X-ray Tube
(1.54060 ). Samples were pressed into a sample holder to generate a flat and smooth plane
surface. The samples were then exposed to an X-ray beam with voltage of 40 kV and a current

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40 mA. All measurements were performed from 3o to 50o (2) coupled with scanning speed of
0.02o / step and 1 second for every scan step to cover the characteristic peaks of the crystalline
KTP . Area under the diffracted peaks was calculated by integrating the XRPD diffractograms

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using ORIGIN 8.0 software.

2.3.2 Water content measurement

Water content of the obtained samples was determined by heating approximately 10mg of

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sample using a hotplate at 100oC for 10 minutes. The weight of the samples before and after

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heating was recorded. The percentage of weight loss after 10 minutes of heating at 100oC was
taken as the function of water content in the sample.
2.3.3 DSC measurement

Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) measurements were performed with Perkin

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Elmer Pyris 6 DSC. Approximately 2-4mg of samples was packed in crimped aluminum pan
and heated under dry nitrogen purge. Samples were heated from 20C to 200C at 10C/min,

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all samples were scan in duplicate. The results were analyzed using Pyris Data Analysis.

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2.3.4 ATR-FTIR spectroscopy

Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectra were

recorded over a wavenumber range of 500 cm-1 to 4000 cm-1 with a resolution of 4cm-1 and
32 scans using Thermo Nicolet FTIR Nexus spectrometer coupled with ATR accessory. The
spectra were analyzed using OMNIC software.

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2.4 UV-vis spectroscopy
To quantify the API content in a medium sample, a Perkin-Elmer Lambda XLS UV/VIS
spectrophotometer (USA) was used. max specified for KTP which was identified to be devoid

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of any interference from the added excipients at 259nm was used. Calibration curves were
constructed for known concentration of KTP in distilled water at 259 nm by using Beer

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Lambert plots. Each point in the calibration line was an average value of three measurements.
2.5 Dissolution studies

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Dissolution tests were performed using paddle method in a calibrated Varian VK7000
Dissolution Apparatus. 900mL of distilled water was used as a dissolution medium. The
dissolution medium was set at 37.0 0.5C and the paddle speed of 50 rpm was used. Pure
drug, polymer, physical mixtures and spray-dried products were sieved to a controlled particle

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size range of 100-106 m. Then, the samples equivalent to 20 mg of KTP (based on formulation
composition) were added to the dissolution medium upon the start of dissolution experiment.

10ml of the samples was withdrawn at 2, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 120 minutes. The

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volume of dissolution medium withdrawn was immediately replaced by introducing the same
volume of fresh medium into the dissolution vessel. The samples were then filtered with

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mixed cellulose ester microfilter of 0.45m pore size (MFS membrane filter, Lot no. 41CLCA)
and analyzed for content of KTP using UV-vies spectroscopy at 259 nm. To compare the
dissolution performances between the PM and SD systems, similarity factor (f2), which could
be expressed by Equation (1), was used [24].

where n is the number of time points, Rt is the percentage of drug release of a reference batch

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at the time t and Tt is the percentage of drug release of the comparison batch at time t. When f2
is greater than 50 (i.e. 50-100), this indicates the sameness or equivalence of the both
compared profiles. Conversely, when f2 is less than 50 is an indication that the two profiles

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are different. In this study, dissolution profiles were compared up to a point after 80% drug
release of the formulation. Similarity factor is an independent approach that measures the
similarity in percentage between the 2 profiles of dissolution. This model was utilized as a

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tool to provide a gross idea on the rank order of the dissolution performance differences

3. Results and discussion

3.1 X-ray Powder Diffraction analysis

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between the prepared amorphous SD and their PM systems.

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Amorphicity of a solid dispersion has previously been concluded to be pertinent in

ensuring the final performances of solid dispersion. In light of this, the current study is trying
to complement the existing knowledge by forming solid dispersion and relate the essentiality

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of amorphousness to the final performance of solid dispersion. To do this, XRPD was

employed to check the crystallinity of all the prepared samples. Fig. 8 shows the XRPD

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diffractograms of all the physical mixture and their corresponding spray dried samples.
The diffractograms showed the characteristic diffracted peak of ketoprofen in the region
of 13o to 25o (Fig. 1A). These peaks were also noted in all the physical mixtures which
indicate the presence of crystalline KTP in those samples (Fig. 1B to 1D). Crystallinity of
each sample was quantitatively determined by calculating area under the diffracted peaks of
the XRPD diffractogram. The results were tabulated in Table 1. It is interesting to note that
the crystallinity of KTP has been reduced merely by trituration using mortar and pestle. There
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is a trend of in the crystallinity reduction whereby area under the diffracted peaks of PM KTP
PVP K30 is lowest followed by < PM KTP PVPVA and < PM KTP PVA systems. This
implies the different ability of the carrier system in interrupting the crystalline structure of

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KTP [25].
Halo patterns were shown in the diffractograms of spray dried 30% KTP in PVP K30 and
PVPVA 6:4, respectively (Fig. 1E and 1F respectively), which indicated the absence of

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crystalline material in these samples. In contrast, characteristic peaks of the ketoprofen in the
region of 13o to 25o and PVA at 19.4o are detected in spray dried 30% KTP in PVA which

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correspond to 51.34% of crystallinity (Fig. 1G and Table 1). This ascertains the presence of
crystalline traces of ketoprofen in the SD KTP PVA sample. Here, the amorphous PVP
carriers have shown to be able to produce fully ASD in comparison to the partially crystalline
carrier PVA.

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It is to bear in mind that, according to the theoretical assumption, the presence of

crystalline material in the solid dispersion may deteriorate dissolution performance of the

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system as compare to the same system without crystalline traces [3]. This result shall be
compared to the dissolution performance which will be presented and discussed in the

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dissolution section of this paper.

3.2. Water content of physical mixture and solid dispersion

Water content has been shown to be a critical parameter for dissolution performance and
stability of solid dispersion system [26, 27]. Product with lower moisture content is preferred
over that with higher moisture content. This parameter may determine physical stability and
overall performances of the solid dispersion as it will affect crystallization tendency of
amorphous solid dispersion. Hence it is critical to characterize the water content of solid

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dispersion. Fig. 2 displays water content of PM and their corresponding spray dried products.
Based on Fig. 2, it is noted that all the spray dried products possess lower water content as
compared with their corresponding physical mixture. The low moisture content of SD

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products was due to the water evaporation from the mixture in spray drying condition. The
lower the water content of the mixture, the more stable the mixture.

SD 30 KTP and PVA shows the lowest water content when compared with the PVPVA

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6:4 and PVP K30. The presence of high water content in SD KTP and PVPVA 6:4 and PVP
K30 shows that the products are not completely dried after spray drying. Besides, it may also

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attribute to the hygroscopicity of the PVP polymers [28].

3.3. DSC analysis

The solid dispersion and their corresponding carriers system employed in the current

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study were characterized using DSC. Fig. 3 presents DSC thermograms for the carrier system.
DSC thermograms of PVP K30 and PVPVA 6:4 reveal glass transition temperatures at circa
165.03oC and 107.53oC, respectively, with the absence of any melting peak (Fig. 3A and 3B).

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These results suggest amorphous characteristics of PVP polymers. Besides, a broad

endotherm ranging from 20 - 100C is observed in both the thermogram of pure PVP K30 and

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PVPVA 6:4 which was attributed to the water loss from the hygroscopic polymers upon
heating. Conversely, no transition was seen in thermogram of PVA but a board endotherm was
observed at temperature circa 190.03oC due to its crystalline property (Fig. 3C) which has
been confirmed in the XRPD data (Fig. 1H). In order to detect the Tg of PVA, it was reheated
after complete melting in the first cycle, the Tg was then obtained from the second heating
cycle which is shown in Fig. 3D with the values detected at 73.61oC.

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In order to understand the solid state changes of the solid dispersion system after spray
drying, solid state of PM system is determined. Fig. 4 shows the DSC thermograms of KTP
and the physical mixtures prepared in this study. Based on the DSC curves, KTP shows a

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sharp melting endotherm at 96.06C with enthalpy of fusion (H) 93.45 J/g (Fig. 4A). A
broad endotherm and a sharp peak are observed in the thermogram of physical mixture (PM)
30% w/w KTP + PVP K30 and PM 30% w/w KTP + PVPVA 6:4 (Fig. 4B and 4C) which are

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corresponding to both the loss of residual water in the polymer and the melting endotherm of
KTP, respectively. On the other hand, only a sharp melting peak was seen with PM KTP PVA

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due to the less hygroscopicity of PVA that doesnt give rise to the broad water loss signal (Fig
4D).

Furthermore, the melting enthalpy, HPM, of the PM in the DSC thermograms of physical
mixture could be used to estimate the percentage of crystallinity of the KTP remain in the

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mixture. The crystallinity could be calculated using Eq. (2) and Eq. (3):

Where

is the enthalpy of pure ketoprofen,

is enthalpy

attributed by the KTP in the physical mixture, m is total weight of physical mixture and
is weight of KTP in the PM. The degrees of crystallinity calculated from DSC

measurements are listed in Table 2.

Based on the values calculated, all the investigated systems reveal less than 100% of
crystallinity despite the simple mixing process using a mortar and pestle. This result is in

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agreement to the deduction obtained from XPRD data (section 3.1, Table 1) whereby certain
portion of the crystalline KTP has turned into amorphous through simple trituration with the
carrier polymer. Similar observation has been reported before for ibuprofen and PVP whereby

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a spontaneous conversion of the physical mixtures into a stable glasslike form is observed due
to the intense drug polymer interaction between the studied API and PVP [25]. However, as
far as DSC measurement is concerned, the possible interference from the dissolution of

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crystalline KTP into the carrier system upon heating in DSC shall not be excluded.

Fig. 5 displays DSC thermograms of amorphous Ketoprofen and the SD system prepared

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in this study. The absence of melting peak in SD30 KTP + PVP K30 and SD30 KTP +
PVPVA 6:4 (Fig. 5B and 5C) indicates the absence of crystalline trace of KTP in the prepared
spray dried system. This proposes amorphousness of the prepared products. This might be
related to the intermolecular hydrogen bonding between KTP and PVP K30 and/or loss of

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drug mobility as the drug was entrapped in polymer after evaporation of solvent during the
spray drying process [29]. As predicted from the XRPD data, a small endotherm was detected
at onset of 80.78oC in the thermogram of SD 30 KTP + PVA (Fig. 5D) which is corresponding

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to the depressed melting point of ketoprofen. This phenomenon shows the presence crystalline
trace in spray dried product of KTP in PVA. The calculated crystal traces in the spray dried

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product of KTP-PVA using Eq. 2 and Eq.3 is approximated to be 4.51%. This value is in
contrast to the crystallinity predicted from area under the diffracted peaks in XRPD
diffractogram, i.e. approximately 51.34%. This may be due to the intimate contact between
the KTP and polymer in SD sample that lead to the significant interference of KTP dissolution
into the polymer bed upon heating in DSC.
Comparison between the experimental Tg and theoretical Tg calculated using
Gordon-Taylor equation in Eq. 4 is carried out [30].
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Table 3 lists all the numeric values used to calculate the theoretical Tg whereas table 4

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compares the experimental Tg and theoretical Tg of all the investigated solid dispersion
systems. According to table 4, the experimental and theoretical values differ significantly.
This deviation occurs due to non-ideal mixing of the spray-dried products [31]. The lowering
of Tg may be explained by incomplete drying of the product in the low inlet temperature

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during the spray drying process. This could be further evidenced by the detected water content

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of approximately 5-10% for all the SD systems (Fig. 2). Besides, hydroscopicity of PVP
polymer which absorbed a big amount of moisture in its structure during preparation of DSC
scanning may also lead to the lowering of Tg via plasticization of water [32]. Nevertheless, a
single Tg detected for SD KTP PVP K30 and SD KTP PVPVA 6:4 systems devoid any other
thermal event is a conventional indication of homogenous mixing of solid dispersion. Overall,

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Tg of the solid dispersion system of KTP-PVP K30 and KTP-PVPVA 6:4 has increased from
the low Tg of the pure KTP (Fig.5A). The increase of Tg implies the lower molecular mobility

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in comparison to the pure KTP which possess a Tg at a low temperature of -3.78oC (Fig.5A).
This might contribute to the better stability of the amorphous solid dispersion system. The

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enhanced of Tg is not seen in SD KTP PVA as the amorphousness of this system is too low to
be detected.

3.5. Infrared spectra analysis

Drug polymer interaction has been reported to be important for physical stability of a
solid dispersion system [9]. More recently, its importance was widely discussed for
dissolution performance of a product whereby a high drug-polymer interaction may render a
better dissolution performance for an immediate release dosage form [33, 34]. With that in

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mind, ATR-FTIR was used in the current study to investigate the KTP interaction with the
three investigated carriers system. Table 5 displays the chemical structure of the compounds
employed in the current study.

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Fig. 6 shows ATR-FTIR spectrum of crystalline KTP, amorphous KTP PM of KTP-PVP

K30 and its SD systems. ATR-FTIR spectrum of crystalline KTP indicates two main peaks at
region of 1695 cm-1 and 1653cm-1 which corresponds to the C=O stretching of carbonyl group

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(Fig. 6B). These peaks are broadening in melt quench of ketoprofen with an extra peak at
1738 cm-1 (Fig. 6C). This broadening was attributed to the alteration of solid state of KTP

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from crystalline to amorphous form after melt quenching. Besides, the fingerprint region
shows a triplet in region of 704 cm-1 for crystalline KTP and only doublet peak for melt
quench sample (Fig. 6C). These characteristic peaks could be used to probe the solid state of
KTP with the triplet peaks represent crystalline and doublet peaks represents complete

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amorphousness of KTP (compare Fig. 6B and 6C).

Examining the ATR-FTIR spectra of PM KTP PVP K30 (Fig. 6D) in comparison to

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crystalline KTP (Fig. 6B), there is no apparent downshift of the PM spectra. However, in
comparison to the pure PVP K30 spectra (Fig. 6A), the characteristic peaks of C=O stretching

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of the pyrole group of PVP K30 was downshift after physical mixed with KTP. This indicates
certain degree of drug polymer interaction via hydrogen bonding of OH KTP to the C=O
group of PVP K30. After spray drying of PVP K30 with KTP, the characteristic peak at the
fingerprint region of 704 cm-1 is absent in the IR spectra of SD system (Fig. 6E), which
indicates the amorphousness of the SD system. Furthermore, the OH peaks of KTP in IR
spectra of SD were further broadened, showing a less defined peak at 2976 cm-1. An apparent
downshift of the wavenumbers of amorphous KTP from 1738 cm-1 to 1722cm-1 and 1659cm-1
to 1655 cm-1 were seen in the IR spectra of SD KTP PVP K30 (Fig. 6E). The significant
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down-shift of the wavenumber in the SD system signifies a higher degree of KTP-PVP K30
interaction as compared to its PM system.
Similar trend is observed in ATR-FTIR spectra of PVPVA system whereby SD KTP

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PVPVA reveals doublet peaks at fingerprint region of 600-750 cm-1 with the absent of peak
704 cm-1 which shows the complete amorphousness of the SD system (Fig. 7C). Besides, the
C=O stretching of the carbonyl moiety of amorphous KTP and pyrole moiety of PVPVA 6:4

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were both downshifted from 1659 cm-1 and 1674 cm-1 to 1655cm-1 in IR spectra of SD system
(compare IR spectrum of Fig. 7C, 7A and 7E). However, it was found that the C=O stretching

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(1732 cm-1) of the vinyl acetate moiety in both PM and SD preparations of KTP-PVPVA 6:4
did not shift. Therefore it was believed that the main interactions between KTP and PVPVA
6:4 occurs preferentially at the C=O group of the pyrole group rather than the C=O in vinyl
acetate group. Apart from that, the OH stretching of carboxylic acid observed in amorphous

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KTP at 3061 cm-1 is also shifted down to 3057 cm-1. The apparent shift of both the C=O and
OH implies the participation of these moieties in KTP-PVPVA 6:4 hydrogen bond interactions

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of the SD system.

Unlike PVP and PVPVA carrier system, IR spectrum of PVA SD system reveals different

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a trend (Fig.8). PVA indicates a broad peak at O-H stretching region, i.e. 3335cm-1 which
corresponds to the O-H stretching of alkane. The bands at 1712 cm-1 and 1716 cm-1 of the
carbonyl group are attributed to the absorption residual acetate groups due to the manufacture
of PVA from hydrolysis of polyvinyl acetate (Fig. 8A) [35]. After the spray drying process of
PVA with KTP, the triplet in the region of 704 cm-1 is remained in the IR spectrum of the SD
system (Fig. 8E). This indicates the presence of crystal traces in the SD system which is in
agreement to the result obtained for both the XRPD as well as DSC measurement. Since there
is no proton acceptor moiety in PVA, thus no drug-polymer interaction is expected in
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KTP-PVA system. This prediction is consistent to the IR spectra of SD which shown merely a
summation IR spectra of crystalline KTP, amorphous KTP and PVA.
To summarize the infrared results, SD of KTP PVP K30 and PVPVA 6:4 are presented

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with fully amorphous characteristic with certain extent of drug polymer interaction. Unlike
the SD KTP PVP K30, the presence of shoulder 1705cm-1 in SD KTP PVPVA 6:4 and
non-shifting of C=O from acetate group of PVPVA 6:4 inferred limited interaction involving

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this group moiety of carbonyl in PVPVA 6:4 molecule. Hence, it is concluded that KTP PVP
K30 reveals a higher drug-polymer interaction in comparison to KTP PVPVA 6:4 system. On

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the other hand, SD KTP PVA is suggested to be partially crystalline devoid any drug-polymer
interaction. Overall, the intensity of drug polymer interaction is in the trend of KTP
PVPK30 > KTP PVPVA 6:4 > KTP PVA. Interestingly this trend is in accordance to the
degree of amorphousness concluded from XRPD of the PM systems. Similar trend is seen in

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SD system, whereby the both the PVP and PVPVA carrier system revealed complete
amorphousness follow by the partial crystalline behavior of PVA carrier SD system. Thus, it is
hypothesized that degree of drug polymer interaction does interfere with the degree of

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amorphousness in solid dispersion during the manufacturing process.

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3.6 Dissolution performances of the PM and solid dispersions system

The comparison of the dissolution profiles of PM systems
The ability of amorphous SD in producing formulations with enhanced dissolution rate
and bioavailability was widely reported [1, 5, 36-40]. This is due to the ability of amorphous
system in exhibiting high level of supersaturation and thus higher apparent solubility than its
crystalline counterpart [3]. In this study, the dissolution performances were assessed by
comparing the dissolution profiles of pure KTP, PM and their corresponding SD systems

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using similarity factor.
The comparison between dissolution profiles of PMs and SDs systems

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Fig. 9 overlays the dissolution profiles of all the PM systems and ketoprofen alone. All
the PM systems reveal higher initial rate of dissolution in comparison to the dissolution of
ketoprofen alone. The increase the dissolution rate of the PM in comparison to the KTP may

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be due to the well-known wetting effect of the hydrophilic carrier. This effect is obvious when
we compare the initial dissolution rate between PM systems and drug alone. However, the

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wettability effect is vague when these systems were formulated into SD system. The reverse
trend was seen whereby early dissolution rate of PM KTP PVP K30 system is the slowest
followed by < PM KTP PVPVA < and the fastest rate for PM KTP PVA system. This might be
due to the alteration of wettability effect of these carriers systems.

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Similar phenomena has been observed by Terifie and co-workers [41] where
hydrophilicity of the interacted polymer is altered after it was incorporated into the solid
dispersion. According to the authors, this alteration is ascribed to the strong hydrogen bond

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interaction between the carboxylic group of the poorly soluble drug and oxygen moiety of the
hydrophilic polymer which made the polymer difficult to be solubilized [41]. Similarly, in the

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current study, the deterioration in wettability might be ascribed to the interaction between the
carboxylic and oxygen moieties of KTP and PVP or PVPVA 6:4 after spray drying which lead
to the lower initial dissolution rate as compared to their corresponding PM.
Fig. 10 presents the comparison of dissolution profile of KTP, PM and SD for the three
systems investigated in this study. According to Fig. 10, dissolution rate of SD for KTP
PVPVA 6:4 and KTP PVA system are higher than their corresponding PM system (Fig. 10C
and 10D). Interestingly, the most hydrophilic polymer of PVP K30 shows slowest dissolution

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rate among the SD (Fig. 10D). This results is consistent to the conclusion drawn from a report
by Mauludin and co-worker whereby dissolution of SD KTP PVA system dissolve faster than
SD KTP PVP K30 system [42]. However, that published dissolution result (by Mauludin and

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co-worker) revealed a higher release rate of SD KTP PVP K30 system than its corresponding
PM and KTP alone which is not in agreement to the result of the current study [42]. Based on
Fig. 10A, SD KTP PVP K30 not only shows a slower release profile among the tested SD,

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furthermore, its release rate is even slower than its corresponding PM system and Pure KTP
alone with the significant different deduced from the similarity factor calculated in table 7.

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Crystalline traces of KTP is not a hurdle in dissolution of KTP

Table 8 summarizes the dissolution performances of all the investigated samples in this
study. Based on table 8, it shows that dissolution rate of pure KTP was significantly improved
by the physical addition of polymer PVA, PVPVA and PVPK30. On the other hand, it is

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interesting to note that dissolution rate of spray dried SD KTP- PVA, PVP K30 and PVPVA
6:4 do not consistently show the highest rate when compared with PM and pure drug. SD 30

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KTP PVP K30 shows the lowest dissolution rate when compare with pure KTP and PM. The
slight basic property of PVP polymer [43] might fasten dissolution of the acidic molecule of

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KTP. However this is not observed as SD KTP PVP system present the slowest dissolution
rate among all the tested systems. Thus, pH of the dissolved polymer is unlikely to be the
main factor for the different dissolution profiles observed for the case of a pH-dependent API
like ketoprofen.

It is also intriguing that the partially crystalline dispersion, SD 30 KTP PVA, despite its
crystallinity, reveals the greatest enhancement in dissolution profile of KTP over the fully
amorphous SD systems (Fig. 10D). This indicates that the crystallinity of the solid dispersion

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does not present as a hurdle for dissolution process of the KTP. Amorphous solids generally
have higher solubility as compared to their crystalline counterpart. However they may
undergo solution mediated phase transformation to their corresponding less soluble

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metastable or crystalline form in the dynamic of the dissolution medium [44]. After
conversion, the less soluble solid will then give rise to the slower dissolution rate. In this
study, dissolution rate of the partially crystalline SD of 30 KTP PVA not only did not slow

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down the dissolution performance of KTP but further increase its dissolution rate despite the
present of crystal traces. Thus the present of crystalline material as a result of the mediation of

enhancement of dissolution.

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the amorphous solid to their crystalline counterpart is not a sole contributor for the limited

Ability of the carrier in sustaining high surface area of the solute in dissolution process
Based on the types of dissolution mechanism proposed by Craig Duncan [5], dissolution

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shown in the current study might be categorized as carrier dependent process as the
dissolution rate of the same API is highly depends on its carrier, i.e. the KTP domain would

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need to first dissolve in the wetted polymer bed of its carrier before releasing mechanism. In
this respect, KTP solubility in PVA shall be higher than in PVP K30 as PVA reveal a higher

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dissolution rate than KTP alone whereas PVP K30 revealed a slower dissolution rate than
KTP alone. However, the presence of crystalline trace in SD KTP PVA and limited interaction
of PVA and KTP might suggest the reverse. Generally, drug-polymer interaction plays an
important role in enhancing dissolution rate of API in solid dispersion due to the better
solubilisation effect of the API exerted by the polymer carrier [33, 34]. However, this study
shows an exception, higher drug-polymer interaction which may impart higher solubility of
KTP in the polymer, did not give rise to a faster dissolution rate but rather slows down the
dissolution rate.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
Dissolution process of drug is a kinetic process, even though an API may be highly
soluble in a polymer carrier fluid; it may need a long duration to be completely solubilized in
the polymer bed or medium. Thus, solely considering APIs solubility in the polymer might

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not be sufficient to predict the optimum performances of a poorly soluble API. Furthermore
there is no cutting point presented in numerical term of which extend of the solubility of an
API would lead to polymer dependent or drug dependent dissolution process.

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Moreover, due to the dynamic movement of the dissolution medium during dissolution
process, the hydrophobic domain, i.e. drug rich domain, may recrystallize or agglomerate

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during the release process. These negative effects may worsen the dissolution rate when the
carrier dissolved away too rapidly and doesnt play a role in sustaining the high effective
surface area of solute at vicinity of the dissolving layer during dissolution process. The
phenomena agglomeration is clearly seen in the current study as evident by the visible

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particles in the midst of the dissolution vessel while dissolution process (Fig. 11A) despite the
control of particle size (100-160 m) before the dissolution process. The growing of particles
was noted fast in the extremely hydrophilic PVP that release the KTP rapidly due to the rapid

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dissolution of PVP polymer. At the same time, the protecting effect of the PVP polymer as
amorphous stabilizer and steric hindrance of crystal growth is vanishing and hence the value

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of the original amorphous solid dispersion would have been lost (Fig. 11B). Also, the growing
of particle size reduces the effective surface area for dissolving during the dissolution process.
This is the main factors for the unpredictable dissolution of solid dispersion, particularly the
fast dissolving carrier, i.e. PVP homopolymer.
In contrast, even though PVA is a partially crystalline polymer with limited interaction
with KTP, its high viscosity in solution, i.e. 40mPa.s at 4% might present as a barrier for the
solution mediated transformation of the drug domain during dissolution (as compared to the
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
low viscosity of PVP and PVPVA 6:4 in solution i.e., less than 5-8 mPa.s at same
concentration). Nonetheless, the release mechanism of PVA which was detailed in a report by
Mallapragada and co-wrokers, showed the possibility of this polymer to be released in a

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continuing lamellar unfolding manner might further assist the release of drug devoid the
extensive agglomeration of the hydrophobic drug domain [45]. Therefore, ability of the

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carrier in sustaining high surface area of the solute during the dissolution process is crucial.

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4. Conclusion

Ketoprofen readily forms amorphous solid dispersion by spray drying with PVP and
PVPVA polymers. However, only partially amorphous system obtained when spray drying
with PVA polymer. This may be attributed by the weaker drug polymer interaction in PVA

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system that lead to the lower degree of amorphization.

The amorphous property, which is deemed to be an important factor for dissolution

enhancement of solid dispersion, is shown to be insignificant for dissolution enhancement of

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solid dispersion preparation in the current study. Complete amorphization of the SD 30 KTP
PVP K30, which may be formed due to the high degree of drug-polymer interaction, does not

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gurantee absolute dissolution enhancement of the highly active amorphous form of ketoprofen.
In this study, the solution mediated solid transformation process which gives rise to the
hydrophobic crystalline traces of KTP is just a bridge to the real hurdle of the dissolution of
API. Competing factor between the bigger size of recrystallized drug and re-dissolution of
these particles in its recrystallized form may be the main hurdle in slowing down dissolution
of the API.
Hence, the true advantage of amorphous solid dispersion is the competing balanced
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
between the amorphicity of the drug, its recrystallization tendency and more importantly the
hydrophobic agglomeration. More investigation should be carried out to ensure the key

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properties that determine the beneficial side of solid dispersion.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support received from Universiti Sains Malaysia

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in carrying out this work.

[1]

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Figure legends

Fig 1: X-ray Diffractogram of the investigated samples: (A) KTP, (B) PM 30% KTP K30, (C)

KTP PVPVA 6:4, (G) SD 30% KTP PVA and (H) PVA alone..

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PM 30% KTP PVPVA 6:4, (D) PM 30 % KTP PVA, (E) SD 30% KTP PVP K30, (F) SD 30%

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Fig 2: Water content determination among SD and PM of KTP with PVA, PVPVA 6:4 and

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PVP K30.

Fig 3: DSC thermogram of : (A) PVP K30, (B) PVPVA 6:4, (C) first heating cycle of PVA and
(D) second heating cycle of PVA. Two heating cycle of PVA was performed in order to
investigate the glass transition temperature (Tg) of PVA in the second cycle as the raw PVA is

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originally a crystalline material.

Fig 4: DSC thermograms of : (A) pure ketoprofen (KTP), (B) PM 30% KTP-PVP K30, (C)

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PM 30% KTP-PVPVA 6:4 and (D) PM 30% KTP PVA.

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Fig 5: DSC thermogram of : (A) 2nd heating of Ketoprofen after complete melting in the first
cycle, (B) SD 30% KTP PVP K30, (C) SD 30% KTP PVPVA 6:4 and (D) SD 30% KTP PVA.
Endotherm (as indicated by an arrow) in curve (D) corresponds to the thermal event of PVA
(please refer to the thermogram of pure PVA in Fig 3 (C)).

Fig 6: ATR-FTIR spectra of : (A) pure PVP K30, (B) pure crystalline KTP, (C) amorphous
KTP, (D) PM KTP PVPK30 and (E) SD KTP PVP K30.

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Fig 7: ATR-FTIR spectra of : (A) pure PVPVA 6:4, (B) pure crystalline KTP, (C) amorphous
KTP, (D) PM KTP PVPVA 6:4 and (E) SD KTP PVPVA 6:4.

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Fig 8: ATR-FTIR spectra of : (A) pure PVA, (B) pure crystalline KTP, (C) amorphous KTP,
(D) PM KTP PVA and (E) SD KTP PVA.

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Fig 9: Comparison of dissolution profile among physical mixture of Ketoprofen (KTP) . PM

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KTP PVP K30 (X), PM KTP PVPVA 6:4 () and PM KTP PVA ().

Fig 10: Comparison of dissolution profile among solid dispersions systems : (A) KTP-PVP
K30 system, (B) KTP-PVPVA 6:4 system, (C) KTP-PVA system and (D) overlaid dissolution

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profiles of the three spray dried systems with the profile of pure ketoprofen alone.

Fig 11: (A) Big particles were visible in the dissolution medium while dissolution process.
Dotted line circles highlight the examples of the big particles. (B) Possible mechanism for the

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delayed dissolution: Upon dissolution, hydrophilic polymer dissolve rapidly, leave the API
stranded in the midst of the dissolution medium. Beside the possibility of recrystallization,

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hydrophobic forces of the particle caused extensive agglomeration. This leads to the reduction
of effective surface area for dissolution process.
dispersion is slowed down.

33

Consequently dissolution rate of the solid

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Table legends

Table 1: Crystallinity of PM and SD systems calculated from area under the peaks diffracted

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in XRPD diffractograms.

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Table 2: Crystallinity of ketoprofen in physical mixture based on DSC data.

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Table 3: Values used to calculate Theoretical Tg based on Gordon-Taylor equation.

Table 4: The comparison between theoretical Tg and experimental Tg of the investigated

system.

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Table 5: Chemical structure of the materials used in this study.

Table 6: Comparison of f2 value among Physical Mixture Products (PM KTP PVA, PM KTP

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PVPVA 6:4 , PM PVP K30) and Pure KTP.

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Table 7: Comparison of f2 Value among Spray dried products (SD KTP PVA, SD KTP PVPVA
6:4, SD PVP K30) and their corresponding physical mixtures.

Table 8: Summary of dissolution performances among KTP with PVA, PVPVA 6:4, PVP K30.

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Tables:
Table 1: Crystallinity of PM and SD systems calculated from area under the peaks
diffracted in XRPD diffractograms.
Area under the peaks of

Systems

% crystallinity

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XRPD diffractograms

Crystalline KTP

38049.50

100% Fully crystalline

PM 30% KTP PVK30

14106.45

61.79

PM 30% KTP PVPVA

16929.27

PM 30% KTP PVA

17592.10

SD 30% KTP PVPVA

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77.06

Fully amorphous

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SD 30% KTP PVP K30

74.15

SD 30% KTP PVA

Fully amorphous

11721.70

51.34

Diffractograms of the corresponding carrier system of all PM and SD systems have been subtracted. Baselines of the
subtracted diffractograms were normalized and calculated for the area under the peaks.

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Table 2: Crystallinity of ketoprofen in physical mixture based on DSC data.

Crystallinity calculated from DSC enthalpy (%)

PM 30% KTP-PVP K30

64.61

PM 30% KTP-PVPVA 6:4

70.86

PM 30% KTP-PVA

79.15

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Physical mixture systems

Table 3: Values used to calculate Theoretical Tg based on Gordon-Taylor equation.

Delta Cp1

Delta Cp2

K (Delta

(drug)

(polymer)

Cp2/Delta Cp1)

Pure KTP

0.525

-3.78

PVP K30

0.321

0.6114

165.03

PVPVA

0.632

1.2038

107.53

PVA

0.905

1.7238

73.61

Tg1 (C)

Tg2 (C)

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Table 4: The comparison between theoretical Tg and experimental Tg of the
investigated system.
Theoretical Tg (C)

Experimental Tg (C)

SD 30 KTP + PVP K30

95.46

51.87

SD 30 KTP + PVPVA 6:4

78.31

SD 30 KTP + PVA

54.45

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SD system

48.31

No Tg detected

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Table 5: Chemical structure of the materials used in this study.

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Table 6: Comparison of f2 value among Physical Mixture Products (PM KTP PVA, PM
KTP PVPVA 6:4 , PM PVP K30) and Pure KTP.
Compared systems

F2 value
41.64

PM 30 KTP PVPVA & KTP

42.09

PM 30 KTP PVA & KTP

44.59

PM 30 KTP PVP K30 & PM 30 KTP PVPVA 6:4

50.02

PM 30 KTP PVP K30 & PM 30 KTP PVA

55.40

PM 30 KTP PVPVA & PM 30 KTP PVA

70.88

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PM 30 KTP K30 & KTP

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Table 7: Comparison of f2 Value among Spray dried products (SD KTP PVA, SD KTP
PVPVA 6:4, SD PVP K30) and their corresponding physical mixtures.
Mixtures

F2 value
28.49

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SD KTP PVPK30 & PM KTP PVPK30

SD KTP PVPVA and PM KTP PVPVA

19.88

SD KTP PVA and PM KTP PVA

23.96

SD 30 KTP PVPK30 & SD 30 KTP PVPVA

12.36

14.23

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SD 30 KTP PVPK30 & SD KTP PVA

35.60

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Table 8: Summary of dissolution performances among KTP with PVA, PVPVA 6:4,
PVP K30.
Solid state of SD

Dissolution
Rate

amorphous

K30

Fully

KTP-

amorphous

PVPVA 6:4

Partially

KTP-PVA

KTP-PVP

>

Drugs

>

Pure KTP

>

Pure KTP

>

Pure KTP

K30
KTP-

PVPVA 6:4

>

KTP-PVA

AC
C

crystalline

<

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KTP-PVP

Dissolution
Rate

EP

Fully

PM

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Figures:

Fig 1: X-ray Diffractogram of the investigated samples: (A) KTP, (B) PM 30% KTP

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K30, (C) PM 30% KTP PVPVA 6:4, (D) PM 30 % KTP PVA, (E) SD 30% KTP PVP

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K30, (F) SD 30% KTP PVPVA, 6:4 (G) SD 30% KTP PVA and (H) PVA alone.

Fig 2: Water content determination among SD and PM of KTP with PVA, PVPVA 6:4
and PVP K30.

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Fig 3: DSC thermogram of : (A) PVP K30, (B) PVPVA 6:4, (C) first heating cycle of
PVA and (D) second heating cycle of PVA. Two heating cycle of PVA was performed in

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order to investigate the glass transition temperature (Tg) of PVA in the second cycle as

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the raw PVA is originally a crystalline material.

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Fig 4: DSC thermograms of : (A) pure ketoprofen (KTP), (B) PM 30% KTP-PVP K30,

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(C) PM 30% KTP-PVPVA 6:4 and (D) PM 30% KTP PVA.

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Fig 5: DSC thermogram of : (A) 2nd heating of Ketoprofen after complete melting in the
first cycle, (B) SD 30% KTP PVP K30, (C) SD 30% KTP PVPVA 6:4 and (D) SD 30%
KTP PVA. Endotherm (as indicated by an arrow) in curve (D) corresponds to the

AC
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thermal event of PVA (please refer to the thermogram of pure PVA in Fig 3 (C)).

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Fig 6: ATR-FTIR spectra of : (A) pure PVP K30, (B) pure crystalline KTP, (C)

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amorphous KTP, (D) PM KTP PVPK30 and (E) SD KTP PVP K30.

Fig 7: ATR-FTIR spectra of : (A) pure PVPVA 6:4, (B) pure crystalline KTP, (C)
amorphous KTP, (D) PM KTP PVPVA 6:4 and (E) SD KTP PVPVA 6:4.

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Fig 8: ATR-FTIR spectra of : (A) pure PVA, (B) pure crystalline KTP, (C) amorphous

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KTP, (D) PM KTP PVA and (E) SD KTP PVA.

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Fig 9: Comparison of dissolution profile among physical mixture of Ketoprofen (KTP) .

AC
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PM KTP PVP K30 (X), PM KTP PVPVA 6:4 () and PM KTP PVA ().

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Fig 10: Comparison of dissolution profile among solid dispersions systems : (A) KTPPVP K30 system, (B) KTP-PVPVA 6:4 system, (C) KTP-PVA system and (D) overlaid
dissolution profiles of the three spray dried systems with the profile of pure ketoprofen

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alone.

(B)
API

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(A)

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Hydrophilic

AC
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Fig 11: (A) Big particles were visible in the dissolution medium while dissolution process.
Dotted line circles highlight the examples of the big particles. (B) Possible mechanism
for the delayed dissolution: Upon dissolution, hydrophilic polymer dissolve rapidly, leave
the API stranded in the midst of the dissolution medium. Beside the possibility of
recrystallization, hydrophobic forces of the particle caused extensive agglomeration.
This leads to the reduction of effective surface area for dissolution process.
Consequently dissolution rate of the solid dispersion is slowed down.