Choosing the right membrane filter for dissolution testing increases efficiency in pharma laboratories throughout the workflow.
In today’s competitive pharmaceutical environment, gain an advantage by taking a closer look at filtration.
Getting the basics right:
Filtration steps in dissolution testing can easily be overlooked.
From drug development to batch release, incorrect filter selection can damage sample integrity. This leads to clogged columns due to ‘dirty’ samples, higher maintenance costs, unclear test results and time consuming re-testing. The correct filter increases productivity and provides reliable test results – whether the workflow is manual, semi, or fully automated.
Making the right choice:
Choosing the correct membrane or media is dependent on the sample preparation used in the workflow. So, what are the main features you should consider?
- For dissolution media with a large amount of coarse particulates, choose a depth filter that only contains glass fibre
- When the volume of your sample is low, a membrane filter is preferable
- If your standard depth filter does not provide a clear filtrate and/or a membrane filter gets clogged, go for a combined depth and membrane filter.
- For help with filter selection, download the Dissolution filter decision matrix
Laboratories also need to think about chemical compatibility, adsorption, detection of analytes, and inference.
If introducing automation into the workflow, which is ideally suited to the multiple sampling steps in dissolution testing, there are additional factors to be considered. For example, labs need to think about whether the polypropylene housing in the syringe filter is dimensionally compatible with new systems. The ease of use and frequency of filter replacements between timepoints also needs to be considered.
Driving change:
To stay competitive in the pharmaceutical industry it’s necessary to boost productivity while prioritizing safety and compliance. Huge investments in new, advanced instrumentation is not always the answer.
Quality science starts with getting the basics right.
WhatmanTM is here to help with our wide range of filtration products and our extensive knowledge of dissolution and filtration processes.
Want to know more about filter selection?
Download our deep dive article, Filtering Out Inefficiencies in Dissolution Testing, to learn how the right filter can save pharma laboratories time and money