X-ray diffraction is a powerful method to use in the lab, however, it can also be used in manufacturing. While many people associate the world of manufacturing with assembly lines and large machines, x-ray diffraction is very useful.

Let’s take a look at 5 x-ray diffract applications that are found in manufacturing.

1. Process Control

When a product is being manufactured, there’s always a change that morphological changes will take place. These changes can take place in a crystalline phase thanks to a number of stress forces being introduced.

When it comes to manufacturing medication, these changes can affect the medication’s bio-availability. This refers to how much of the specific drug is absorbed by the body.

X-ray diffraction can help because you can determine how many changes have occurred. In addition to this, as x-ray diffraction is a non-destructive procedure, it makes it ideal to use. In other words, x-ray diffraction will not damage the medication. This allows those who are manufacturing it to continue work on the bio-availability without wasting much time.

2. Dosage Uniformity

X-ray Diffraction can help manufacturers to test different materials. The process involves testing the materials by exposing them to a range of conditions. This is an important factor as it helps the manufacturer to determine how well the dosage uniformity works. This is achieved in relation to all of the active ingredients and their percentages. It also helps to determine how much packing ingredient to use and which form to use it in (Crystalline or amorphous). The end result is a drug that is highly effective and can help patients all over the world.

3. Stress Measurement

This type of measurement is used to measure the crystal lattice. This measurement focuses on the lattice strain at an atomic level. The level of stress is measured by using intrinsic property measurement.

Using strain readings, they are calculated by using a linear elastic distortion. In other words, it measures the change between atoms and lattice depth. Usually very accurate, the measurements tend to use advanced algorithms.

4. Crystallinity Percentage

This percentage is useful when it comes to drug dosage. In fact, it can have a lot of influence on the world of manufacturing and pharmacological behavior.

Tests performed using x-ray diffraction can help manufacturers to work our the percentage of crystallinity. This is achieved by measuring an amorphous filler’s volume concentration in relation to a crystalline matrix.

5. Excipients and the Compatibility

X-ray diffraction is an ideal method to use when manufacturing combinations of drug excipients. It is crucial that the correct consistency of various properties are examined. This is accomplished in relation to bio-availability and drug release. Without the use of x-ray diffraction, determining the correct consistency can prove to be so much harder.

As you can see, x-ray diffraction is used in a range of applications in manufacturing. The processes are made so much easier by using this method. This ensures that medication is the best that it can be for patients everywhere.