JPH04111997A - Powder compression molding method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the generation of capping and lamination, etc., by dropping the upper pestle parts of upper pestles adjusted to a prescribed weight into mortar holes packed with powders and precompressing the powders by their own weight. CONSTITUTION:The powders in the mortar holes 61 of a turn table 10 are surely deaerated as the powders packed into the mortar holes 61 are precompressed by the upper pestles 32 of the prescribed weight before the compression molding of the powders by pressure molding. The tablets produced in the compression molding in succession to the precompression have no possibility of the generation of the capping and lamination and further there is no possibility that the powders are ejected from the inside of the mortar holes 61. In addition, this precompression is executed by the own weights of the upper pestles 32 and, therefore, the time for the precompression is assured relatively long even in the case of the compression molding at a high speed. The possibility of the generation of the deaeration with lapse of time is thus eliminated even in the case of the powders contg. the waxy material. The generation of the capping and lamination in the tablets to be produced is thereby eliminated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to a method for compression molding powder, which is carried out to produce powder molded articles such as tablets.

(Prior Art) When compressing powdered pharmaceuticals, foods, bath additives, etc. into tablets, a rotary powder compression molding machine is usually used. This powder compression molding machine, also called a tablet machine or a tablet press, has a rotating horizontal disc-shaped turntable. The rotary disk is provided with a large number of mortar holes passing through it in the vertical direction at equal intervals in the rotational direction. Above and below each mortar hole of the rotary disk, a pair of upper and lower punches, which move up and down while rotating together with the rotary disk, are provided in correspondence with each mortar hole.

Tablets are manufactured using such a rotary powder compression molding machine as follows. A lower punch is inserted into each mortar hole from below, and the lower end of each mortar hole or the lower punch portion is always closed. Next, the lower punch moves down through the mortar holes as the rotary disk rotates, and each mortar hole is sequentially filled with powder. When the powder is filled into the mortar hole, the lower and upper punches for compression molding the powder are pressurized by a pre-pressure roller and a main-pressure roller, respectively. As a result, the powder is compressed into a tablet within the mortar hole. The tablet formed in the die hole is then pushed out of the die hole by the lower punch and taken out.

In this way, tablets are sequentially produced in each die hole during one revolution of the rotary disk.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) In the manufacture of tablets using such a rotary powder compression molding machine, air contained in the powder is discharged from the powder due to compression by the pre-compression roller. Therefore, when powder is compressed by the main pressure roller, occurrence of capping and lamination is suppressed, and furthermore, powder is suppressed from being ejected from the gaps between the upper and lower punches and the mortar hole. In particular, when compressing powder with good fluidity into tablets,
Such problems rarely occur.

However, when tabletting powder containing a large amount of waxy or liquid substances such as vitamin E, the temperature inside the mortar increases over time due to frictional heat between the upper and lower punches and the mortar hole. When the tableting process continues for a long time, the wax-like substance in the powder filled in the mortar becomes soft due to the high temperature inside the mortar. When the waxy substance softens, the gaps between the upper and lower punches and the mortar hole are blocked by the softened waxy substance, which prevents the powder from being sufficiently degassed and causes capping or capping on the manufactured tablets. There is a risk of lamination occurring. Furthermore, since the air in the powder is suddenly ejected from the narrowed gap between the upper and lower punches and the mortar hole, a large amount of powder leaks from the mortar hole along with the ejected air, and the tablets being manufactured are Weight fluctuations occur. In addition, a large amount of powder leaks from unoccluded mortars. Powder leaking from the die bore can also enter the details of the compression molding machine and cause abnormal wear of the details.

This phenomenon, which occurs due to the rise in temperature inside the die hole, can be avoided by slowing down the operation speed of the compression molding machine to suppress the generation of frictional heat between the upper and lower punches and the die hole. This can be suppressed to some extent by slowing down and allowing degassing to follow. However, by slowing down the operating speed of the compression molding machine, production efficiency is significantly reduced.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems. -3= The purpose of the present invention is to ensure that the powder can be degassed when compression molding powder with poor degassing properties in high-speed operation, and to prevent capping, lamination, etc. It is an object of the present invention to provide a powder compression molding method that can prevent the occurrence of such problems.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The powder compression molding method of the present invention includes a mortar hole provided vertically penetrating in a rotary disk that rotates in a horizontal state.
Powder is filled with the lower punch of the lower punch inserted from below, and the upper punch of the upper punch is inserted into the mortar hole from above, and the powder is filled by applying pressure to the lower and upper punches. A powder compression molding method for compression molding, which is characterized by dropping the upper punch part of an upper punch adjusted to a predetermined weight into a mortar filled with powder, and pre-compressing it by its own weight. , thereby achieving the above objective.

(Example) The present invention will be described below with reference to Examples.

FIG. 1 shows a rotary powder compression molding machine used for carrying out the powder compression molding method of the present invention, and the powder compression molding machine is equipped with a rotary disk 1O in a horizontal state. The rotary disk 10 has a large number of through holes 11 passing through it in the vertical direction, or
It is provided with equal spacing from the rotary disk 10 in the rotational direction.

A cylindrical mortar 60 is installed in each through hole 11, respectively. Each day 60 passes through the mortar hole 61 in the vertical direction. Each mortar hole 61 has a constant inner diameter in the vertical direction.

A pair of lower punches 31 are installed on the rotary disk 10 corresponding to the lower and upper sides of the mortar hole 61 on each day 60.
An upper punch 32 is provided corresponding to each mortar hole 61. Each lower punch 31 has a cylindrical lower punch body 31a that is in a vertical state, and a cylindrical lower punch part 31b that protrudes concentrically upward from the lower punch body 31a,
By raising each lower punch 31 in its entirety, the lower punch portion 31b
It is fitted into the mortar hole 61 of the mortar 60.

The outer diameter of each lower punch portion 31b is approximately equal to the inner diameter of the die hole 61. A guide roller 31c is attached to the lower part of each lower punch main body 31a with its axial center in a horizontal state.

Each upper punch 32 has a cylindrical upper punch main body 3 with a vertical shape.
2a, and an upper punch part 32b concentrically protruding downward from the upper punch main body part 32a, and when each upper punch 32 as a whole descends, the upper punch part 32b is inserted into the mortar hole of the mortar 60. 61. The outer diameter of the upper punch portion 32b is approximately equal to the inner diameter of the die hole 61. A guide roller 32c is attached to the upper part of each upper punch main body 32a with the axial direction thereof in a horizontal state. Further, a guide roller 32d is similarly attached to a vertically central portion of the upper punch main body portion 32a on the half body side that is the side where the guide roller 32c is attached.

Each of the lower punches 31 and each of the upper punches 32 is designed to rotate integrally with the rotary disk 10, and is provided on the lower end surface of the lower punch main body 31a of each lower punch 31 and the center part of each upper punch 32. As the kite roller 32d moves around, it touches the guide surface 21 of the lower punch guide 20 and the upper punch guide 4.
0 guide surfaces 41, respectively.

Above a predetermined position on the rotary disk 10, the rotary disk 10
A hopper (not shown) is provided for filling powder into the mortar holes 61 on each day of , a feed shoe 70 for scraping off the filled powder is fixedly provided in contact with the upper surface of the rotary disk 10.

From the position where the feed shoe 70 is provided, the rotary plate lO
A pressurizing device 50 is provided at a position a suitable distance away on the downstream side in the rotational direction. The pressurizing device 50 includes preload rollers 51 and 52 provided on the upstream side of the rotational direction of the rotary disk 10 on the lower side and the upper side with the rotary disk 10 in between, and each of the preload rollers 51 and 52 rotates. Lower and upper main pressure rollers 53 and 54 are arranged at an appropriate distance on the downstream side in the rotational direction of the board 10.
It has .

The lower preload roller 52 is attached to the lower punch 31 that has moved around.
The lower punch body 31 a is brought into contact with the lower end surface of the lower punch body 31 a to press the entire lower punch 31 upward. Further, the upper preload roller 51 comes into contact with the upper end of the upper punch 32 that has moved around and presses the entire upper punch 32 downward. Similarly, the lower main pressure roller 54 contacts the lower end surface of the lower punch body portion 31a of the lower punch 31 and presses the entire lower punch 31 upward. moreover,
The upper Honjo roller 53 contacts the upper end of the upper punch 32 and presses the entire upper punch 32 downward.

Between the upper preload roller 51 and the main pressure roller 53, there is a pair of press guides 5 each in a substantially horizontal state.
6 and 57 are provided. Each of the pressure guides 56 and 57 corresponds to each guide roller 32c and 3 of the upper punch 32 that is pressed downward by the preload roller 51.
2d to guide the upper punch 32 so that its pressurized state is maintained.

Also between the lower preload roller 52 and the main pressure roller 54, there is a pair of press guides 5 each in a substantially horizontal state.
5 is provided, and comes into contact with the guide roller 31c of the lower punch 31 that has been moved upward by the lower preload roller 52, and guides the lower punch 31 so that the pressurized state is maintained.

The guide surface 21 of the lower punch kite 20 is in a substantially horizontal state in the filling region facing the powder hopper, and the upstream portion of the filling region in the rotational direction of the rotary disk 10 is gradually downward as it approaches the upstream side. It has a sloping rising surface. Therefore, as the lower punch 31 moves around, it is guided by the rising surface and raised, and in the filling area facing the hopper, the lower punch part 31b, which is the upper end of the lower punch 31, is inserted into the mortar hole of the mortar 60. 61 by a predetermined amount. Lower pestle guide 20
The guide surface 21 is in a horizontal state from this filling area to the area where the lower preload roller 52 is disposed on the upstream side in the rotational direction of the rotary plate 10, and the lower punch in this horizontal state The guide 20 keeps the lower punch 31 at a constant height.

The lower punch guide 20 separates the area where the pressure device 50 is installed from each lower punch 3.
The guide roller 31c of each lower punch 31
It is designed so that it does not come into contact with the And the pressurizing device 50
From the position where the lower main pressure roller 54 is disposed to the downstream side, there is a rising surface that is sequentially inclined upward. As a result, the lower punch portion 31a of the lower punch 31 fitted into the mortar hole 61 is further raised to a position approximately equal to the upper surface of the rotary disk 10. Then, the guide surface 21 of the lower pestle guide 20 is an inclined surface that gradually slopes downward as it approaches the upstream side.
It is connected to a rising surface that is continuous to the above-mentioned filling area.

On the other hand, the guide surface 41 of the upper punch guide 40
The area is in a nearly horizontal state, except for the area where the is disposed, and its upstream and downstream areas.

Upper punch 3 guided by this horizontal guide surface 41
2 is in a state where the upper punch portion 32b at the lower end does not fit into the mortar hole 61. The downstream region of the horizontal guide surface of the upper punch guide 40, that is, the region opposite to the portion of the guide surface 21 of the lower punch guide 20 that is continuous to the upstream side of the horizontal portion of the filling region is: The first inclined surface 41a gradually slopes downward as it approaches the upstream side.
The second inclined surface 41b has a larger inclination angle than that of the second inclined surface 41b. The angle of inclination of the first inclined surface 41a is larger than the angle of inclination of the guide surface of the upper punch guide in a conventional compression molding machine. Therefore, the lengths of the first inclined surface 41a and the second inclined surface 41b are sufficiently smaller than the length of the inclined surface of the upper punch guide in a conventional compression molding machine.

The guide roller 32d of the upper punch 32 has a first inclined surface 41a.
Then, the entire upper punch 32 is sequentially lowered by being guided by the second inclined surface 41b. Then, the upper punch portion 32b at the lower end of the upper punch 32 is inserted into the mortar hole 61 halfway along the second inclined surface 41b. The second inclined surface 41
b is continuous with a horizontal surface that supports the guide roller 32d in a state where the upper punch portion 32b of the upper punch 32 is completely fitted into the mortar hole 61 due to its own weight.

The powder compression molding method of the present invention is carried out as follows using a rotary powder compression molding machine configured as described above.

When the rotary disk 10 in the rotary powder compression molding machine is rotated, the lower and upper punches 31 and 32 located above and below the respective mortar holes 61 of the rotary disk 10 are rotated.
move in the same direction and at the same speed.

The lower punch portion 31b at the upper end of the lower punch 31 is always fitted into the mortar hole 61. As a result, each mortar hole 61 is brought into a state where the lower part is closed by the lower punch portion 31b. The mortar hole 61 whose lower end is closed by the lower punch portion 31b of the lower punch 31 and reaches the powder filling position is filled with powder, and is brought to a predetermined amount by the foot knee 70.

When the mortar hole 61 filled with powder passes through the position where the feed shoe 70 is provided, the upper punch 32 located above the mortar hole 61 moves to the first inclined surface 41a of the upper punch guide 40.
It descends while being guided by the second inclined surface 41b, and then descends while being guided by the second inclined surface 41b. The upper punch 3 along the second inclined surface 41b
When the die 2 is lowered, the upper punch portion 32b at the lower end thereof falls into the mortar hole 61 due to its own weight.

As a result, the powder in the mortar hole 61 is pre-compressed by the weight of the upper punch 32, and the air contained in the powder is transferred to the lower punch part 31.
b The gap between the outer peripheral surface and the inner peripheral surface of the mortar hole 61, and the upper punch part 3
2b through the gap between the outer peripheral surface and the inner peripheral surface of the mortar hole 61.
1 is discharged outside. The weight of the upper punch 32 as a whole is approximately twice the weight of the upper punch used in a conventional molding machine so that the powder in the die hole 61 is reliably pre-compressed.

Following such preliminary compression, the lower punch 31 and the upper punch 32 are pressurized by the preload rollers 51 and 52, whereby the powder in the die hole 61 is compression-molded, and further, the powder in the die hole 61 is compressed and molded by the main pressure rollers 53 and 54. The powder in the mortar hole 61 is finished into a tablet product by compression molding.

In the powder compression molding method of the present invention, the powder in the mortar hole 61 is precompressed by the weight of the upper punch 32 before being compression molded by the preload rollers 51 and 52. The compression load in the preliminary compression is determined by the weight of the upper punch 32, and the weight of the upper punch 32 is set so that the powder in the die hole 61 is sufficiently degassed. In addition, the upper pestle guide 4
The entire upper punch 32 is quickly lowered by the second inclined surface 41b of 0, and the powder in the mortar hole 61 is compressed by the punch's own weight for a relatively long period of time, so that the powder degassing effect is large.

If powder or waxy material is included, the temperature inside the mortar hole 61 increases over time due to frictional heat between the lower and upper punches 31 and 32 and the mortar hole 61, and the waxy material softens. .

However, in the method of the present invention, the pre-compression is performed using the upper punch 32.
Since this is done by its own weight, even when the rotary disk 10 rotates at high speed, the rise in temperature within the mortar hole 61 is suppressed, and the softening of the wax-like substance is suppressed.

Even if softening occurs due to temperature rise, the method of the present invention provides a sufficient deaeration effect, so there is no risk of capping or lamination occurring in the manufactured tablets.
In addition, since the air in the packed powder has been thoroughly deaerated, there is almost no air ejected during pre-compression, which is high-speed compression, and the subsequent compression molding.
There is no risk of it erupting.

When manufacturing tablets containing waxy vitamin E (d-alpha phosphate) in high units (50 mg/240 mg) using the conventional method, when the rotation speed of the rotary disk is 4 fM, p, m. (1200 tablets/min), a large amount of capping and lamination occurred in the manufactured tablets after 2 hours from the start of tablet manufacturing, and a large amount of powder spouted from the die holes. Therefore, when the rotational speed of the rotary disk was lowered to 3 Or, l), m, the tablets produced did not suffer from capping or lamination until 4 hours had elapsed from the start of tablet making. A large amount of capping and lamination occurred. The weight of the upper pestle was approximately 400 g. On the other hand, in the powder compression molding method of the present invention, even when the rotating speed of the rotary disk is 40 r, p, m, the produced tablets are free from capping and lamination regardless of the tableting time. There was no powder ejection from the mortar hole. The weight of the upper pestle was approximately 800 g.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, the powder compression molding method of the present invention allows the powder filled in the mortar hole of the rotary disk to rise to a predetermined weight before compression molding. Because the powder is pre-compressed with a punch, the powder in the die hole is reliably degassed, and in the compression molding that follows the pre-compression, the tablets to be packed are free from the risk of sagging or lamination, and are free from the die hole. There is no risk of powder spewing out from inside. Moreover, since this pre-compression is carried out by the weight of the upper punch, even when compression molding is performed at high speed, the pre-compression time can be secured for a relatively long time. There is no risk of the degassing effect decreasing over time, there is no risk of capping or lamination occurring in the manufactured tablets over time, and there is no risk of powder ejecting from the mortar hole over time. .

4. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the main structure of a rotary powder compression molding machine used for carrying out the method of the present invention.

10... Turntable, 20... Lower pestle guide, 31...
Lower punch, 31a...lower pestle main body part, 31b...lower pestle part,
32... Upper punch, 32a... Upper punch main body, 32b...
- Upper punch portion, 40... Upper punch guide, 41... Guide surface, 41a... First inclined surface, 41b... Second inclined surface,
50... Pressure device, 51.52... Preload roller
53.54... Honjo roller 60... Mortar, 61.
...mortar hole.

that's all

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Filling powder into a mortar hole provided vertically penetrating a rotary disk rotating in a horizontal state with the lower punch part of the lower punch inserted from below, A powder compression molding method in which powder is compressed and molded by inserting the upper punch part of an upper punch into the mortar hole from above and applying pressure to the lower and upper punches, wherein the powder is compressed into the mortar hole filled with powder. A powder compression molding method characterized in that the upper punch part of the upper punch adjusted to a predetermined weight is dropped and preliminary compression is performed by its own weight.