Effervescent tablets are a pharmaceutical form of medications or dietary supplements that include a wide range of active ingredients, such as analgesics, vitamins, minerals, as well as additives like sweeteners, flavours, and colorants. Understanding their crystalline structure is crucial for ensuring and understanding their efficacy. Most of these ingredients are in crystalline form, with some existing in multiple polymorphic forms.
X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) is widely used for the identification and detailed analysis of crystalline forms in effervescent tablets. This technique utilizes the diffraction of X-rays on crystalline solids to obtain a unique powder diffraction of X-rays on crystalline solids to obtain a unique powder diffraction pattern for each crystalline phase, allowing for qualitative phase analysis of the samples.
The work began with selection for suitable samples for analysis. Effervescent tablets, primarily dietary supplements or medications, were easily obtained from pharmacies and stores. Before conducting the analysis, I reviewed the literature on crystal structure, polymorphism of samples, and principles od X-ray powder diffraction. Afterward, I prepared and analyzed 15 effervescent tablet samples. The aim of the analysis was to identify the crystalline forms of the active ingredients and any auxiliary substances in the tablets.
To assess the reliability and limitations of the XRPD method, I compared the results with the information provided on the product labels. This comparison also allowed for an evaluation of the method's applicability, as I anticipated that the method might have limitations and might not identify most of the main active ingredients.
Using the X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) method, I successfully identified the majority of substances in the effervescent tablets. The method proved to be effective in identifying the crystalline phases of the main active ingredients and auxiliary substances. The comparison with product labels confirmed the reliability of the method, but due to its limitations, it was not possible to identify all components, particularly those that are amorphous or are present in small amounts.
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