US2006073087A1PendingUtilityA1

Method and apparatus for the formation of particles

48
Individually held — no corporate assignee on recordPriority: Jun 30, 1994Filed: Jun 20, 2005Published: Apr 6, 2006
Est. expiryJun 30, 2014(expired)· nominal 20-yr term from priority
Inventors:Mazen HannaPeter York
B01J 2/04Y02P20/54B01D 11/0407B01D 11/0403B01D 11/0488B01J 3/008A61K 9/1688B01D 11/0411B01J 3/02
48
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Claims

Abstract

The invention provides a method for forming particles of a substance, by co-introducing into a particle formation vessel, in which the temperature and pressure are controlled, of a supercritical fluid; a solution or suspension of the substance in a first vehicle; and a second vehicle which is both substantially miscible with the first vehicle and substantially soluble in the supercritical fluid, in such a way that dispersion of the solution or suspension and the second vehicle, and extraction of the vehicles, occur substantially simultaneously and substantially immediately on introduction of the fluids into the vessel, by the action of the supercritical fluid. Preferably the solution/suspension of the substance is introduced separately from the second vehicle, in such a way that contact between the solution/suspension and the second vehicle occurs either substantially simultaneously with, or immediately before, their dispersion by the supercritical fluid and extraction of the vehicles by the supercritical fluid. The method allows a high degree of control over the size, shape, crystalline form and other physico-chemical properties of the particulate product. The invention also provides apparatus for carrying out such a method, using a coaxial nozzle to introduce the fluids into the particle formation vessel, and a particulate product made using the method or the apparatus.

Claims

exact text as granted — not AI-modified
1 - 29 . (canceled)  
     
     
         30 . A method for forming a particulate product, comprising: 
 maintaining a predetermined temperature and a predetermined pressure within a particle formation vessel;    introducing a supercritical fluid into the particle formation vessel;    introducing a first vehicle containing at least one substance into the particle formation vessel, wherein the first vehicle is substantially insoluble within the supercritical fluid;    introducing a second vehicle into the particle formation vessel, wherein the second vehicle is substantially soluble within the supercritical fluid;    dispersing and extracting the first and second vehicles by the supercritical fluid immediately and simultaneously upon introducing the first and second vehicles and the supercritical fluid into the particle formation vessel; and    forming a plurality of particles containing the at least one substance.    
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 30 , wherein the first vehicle containing the at least one substance is a solution, a suspension or a combination thereof.  
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein a combined mixture of the first and second vehicles is soluble within the supercritical fluid.  
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the supercritical fluid contains a compound selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, sulfur hexafluoride, xenon, ethylene, chlorotrifluoromethane, ethane, trifluoromethane, derivatives thereof and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the first vehicle is water and the supercritical fluid is carbon dioxide.  
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the at least one substance contains a pharmaceutical agent.  
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 35 , wherein the particles contain the pharmaceutical agent coated with a taste-masking agent.  
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the second vehicle has a greater flow rate into the particle formation vessel than the first vehicle containing the substance.  
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 37 , wherein the supercritical fluid contains one or more modifiers.  
     
     
         39 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the first vehicle has functional groups that interact through hydrogen-bonding or dipole-dipole interactions with functional groups contained on the second vehicle.  
     
     
         40 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the at least one substance and the first vehicle are substantially polar and the second vehicle is substantially non-polar.  
     
     
         41 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the at least one substance and the first vehicle are substantially non-polar and the second vehicle is substantially polar.  
     
     
         42 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the at least one substance is substantially insoluble in the second vehicle.  
     
     
         43 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the first vehicle is water and the supercritical fluid is carbon dioxide.  
     
     
         44 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein the second vehicle contains an alcohol.  
     
     
         45 . The method of  claim 44 , wherein the at least one substance contains a protein, a sugar, a derivative thereof or a combination thereof.  
     
     
         46 . The method of  claim 44 , wherein the at least one substance contains a material selected from the group consisting of lactose, maltose, trehalose, sucrose, salmeterol xinafoate, beta-lactamase, a water-soluble sugar, a water-soluble protein, a derivative thereof and a combination thereof.  
     
     
         47 . The method of  claim 46 , wherein the at least one substance contains beta-lactamase and the second vehicle contains ethanol.  
     
     
         48 . The method of  claim 46 , wherein the at least one substance contains lactose, maltose, trehalose or sucrose and the second vehicle contains ethanol.  
     
     
         49 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the first vehicle contains a polar organic solvent and the supercritical fluid contains carbon dioxide.  
     
     
         50 . The method of  claim 49 , wherein the first vehicle contains acetone.  
     
     
         51 . The method of  claim 49 , wherein the second vehicle contains a non-polar organic solvent.  
     
     
         52 . The method of  claim 51 , wherein the second vehicle contains hexane.  
     
     
         53 . The method of  claim 51 , wherein the at least one substance contains a protein, a sugar, a derivative thereof or a combination thereof.  
     
     
         54 . The method of  claim 51 , wherein the at least one substance contains salmeterol xinafoate or a derivative thereof.  
     
     
         55 . The method of  claim 54 , wherein the first vehicle is acetone and the second vehicle is hexane.  
     
     
         56 . A method for forming a particulate product, comprising: 
 maintaining a predetermined temperature and a predetermined pressure within a particle formation vessel;    flowing a supercritical fluid, a first vehicle containing at least one substance and a second vehicle into the particle formation vessel, wherein the first vehicle is substantially insoluble within the supercritical fluid and the second vehicle is substantially soluble within the supercritical fluid;    dispersing and extracting the first and second vehicles by the supercritical fluid immediately and simultaneously upon combining the first and second vehicles and the supercritical fluid within the particle formation vessel; and    forming a plurality of particles containing a pharmaceutical agent coated with a taste-masking agent, wherein the supercritical fluid contains carbon dioxide.    
     
     
         57 . The method of  claim 56 , wherein the first vehicle containing the at least one substance is a solution, a suspension or a combination thereof.  
     
     
         58 . The method of  claim 57 , wherein a combined mixture of the first and second vehicles is soluble within the supercritical fluid.  
     
     
         59 . The method of  claim 58 , wherein the first vehicle is water.  
     
     
         60 . The method of  claim 57 , wherein the second vehicle has a greater flow rate into the particle formation vessel than the first vehicle containing the substance.  
     
     
         61 . The method of  claim 60 , wherein the supercritical fluid contains one or more modifiers.  
     
     
         62 . The method of  claim 57 , wherein the at least one substance is substantially insoluble in the second vehicle.  
     
     
         63 . The method of  claim 57 , wherein the first vehicle is water.  
     
     
         64 . The method of  claim 63 , wherein the second vehicle contains an alcohol.  
     
     
         65 . The method of  claim 57 , wherein the first vehicle is a polar organic solvent.  
     
     
         66 . The method of  claim 65 , wherein the first vehicle is acetone.  
     
     
         67 . The method of  claim 65 , wherein the second vehicle contains a non-polar organic solvent.  
     
     
         68 . The method of  claim 67 , wherein the second vehicle contains hexane.

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