Novel mechanistic description of the water granulation process for hydrophilic polymers

The purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanism behind the water granulation of the hydrophilic polymers HEC and HPMC. To gain insight into this process, properties of the polymers, e.g. molecular weight, viscosity, particle size distribution and interaction with water, were related to torque values measured during the granulation process and to the properties of the dried granules. The torque values in the high shear mixer were determined as function of the binder ratio (g added water per g dry polymer). These methods revealed differences in torque behavior between the polymers, indicating that the viscosity and gelling rate were important parameters determining the torque values. Bimodal particle size distributions for both HEC and HPMC were obtained when performing the granulation in the high shear mixer. A novel granulation mechanism is presented relating the water uptake, the viscosity and the gelling rate to the consolidation and coalescence of the granules. Furthermore, the breakage of the granules is suggested to be limited for hydrophilic granules obtained by water granulation.