Film coating of tablets is an important process in the pharmaceutical industry for improving tablet properties, such as the efficiency of drug delivery, masking unpleasant odours and tastes, and enhancing drug stability. In this thesis, an experimental setup consisting of a tablet positioning stage and a droplet dispenser was used to investigate the penetration of a drug solution into tablets. In a separate experimental chamber, conditions encountered in pharmaceutical coating equipment were simulated, and measurements of the wetted surface area, penetration width and depth, droplet contact angle upon contact with the surface, surface roughness, and coating thickness were performed. The influence of coating thickness on liquid penetration into the tablet and droplet spreading over the surface was investigated.
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