Formation of Pharmaceutical Salts and Cocrystals via Vapour-Assisted Tumbling (VAT) – A Solvent Efficient Process with Potential Industrial Applications

Crystallisations on both the academic and industrial scale often use large volumes of solvent. In order decrease the environmental impact of such processes, new techniques must be discovered that increase the efficiency of the solvents used. Introduced here is a process that combines repurposed industry standard hardware and aspects of mechanochemistry to produce a technique we call “Vapour Assisted Tumbling” (VAT). Pharmaceutical and well-known cocrystals and salts were formed by tumbling the coformers in an atmosphere of vaporised solvent, in this study, methanol (MeOH). This was done inside a custom built analogue of an industrial rotary cone dryer (RCD). It was found that a desired solid form could be obtained as monitored by powder X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry. By repurposing industrial RCDs, it is feasible that solid forms can be crystallised with both minimal and reusable/recyclable solvent – drastically lowering the environmental impact of such transformations.

New Pharmaceutical Salts of Trazodone

New pharmaceutically acceptable salts of trazodone (trazodone hydrogen bromide and trazodone 1-hydroxy-2-naphthonic acid) for the treatment of central nervous system disorders are synthesized and described. Although trazodone salts are poorly crystalline, single-crystal X-ray diffraction data for trazodone 1-hydroxy-2-naphthonic acid were collected and analyzed as well as compared to the previously described crystal structure of commercially available trazodone hydrochloride. The powder samples of all new salts were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and 13C solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Spectroscopic studies were supported by gauge including projector augmented wave (GIPAW) calculations of carbon chemical shielding constants. The main goal of our research was to find salts with better physicochemical properties and to make an attempt to associate them with both the anion structure and the most prominent interactions exhibited by the protonated trazodone cation. The dissolution profiles of trazodone from tablets prepared from various salts with lactose monohydrate were investigated. The studies revealed that salts with simple anions show a fast release of the drug while the presence of more complex anion, more strongly interacting with the cation, effects a slow-release profile of the active substance and can be used for the preparation of the tables with a delay or prolonged mode of action.