- Croscarmellose sodium is used as an excipient in pharmaceutical industries in the manufacturing of tablets and capsules. It is white to greyish-white and is odourless.
Cros-carmellose sodium is a cross-linked polymer of carboxymethylcellulose sodium. Due to cross-linking, it gives good swelling properties. Croscarmellose sodium is also known as super disintegrant
Uses of Croscarmellose sodium
- Croscarmellose sodium is used as Tablet disintegrant 0.5-5%
- Croscarmellose sodium is used as a capsule Disintegrant 10-25%
Croscarmellose sodium is used as a disintegrant in wet granulation, dry granulation and direct compression.
Usually, 2% is used as a disintegrant in direct compression.
3%Â is used as a disintegrant in wet granulation. In wet granulation, Croscarmellose sodium is usually used in two stages as follow,
- Â Intra granularÂ
- Â Extra granulator
CSS added in extra granular breaks the tablet into grains and CSS added in intragranular breaks the grains into powders to release Active pharmaceutical ingredient.
Important topic.
Classification of Excipients used in pharmaceutical.
General properties of CSS
- It is insoluble in water.
- it swells 4-8 % on contact with water.
- Disintegrating properties of CCS show a little decrease in its effect when It reacts with hygroscopic materials present in the dosage form.
- It is obtained from the pulp of wood and cotton fibres.
- It is non-toxic
- It is non-irritant.
- In optimum range, it does not show lump formation.
- It is compatible with most APIs and excipients.
- When croscarmellose sodium is used in excess quantity it retard disintegration properties by forming a gel-like structure.
Incompatibility
- Croscarmellose sodium is not compatible with strong acids.
- Metals like zinc, aluminium
- Salts of iron.
Important topics: