Kinetics of the mechanically induced ibuprofen–nicotinamide co-crystal formation by in situ X-ray diffraction

Casali, Lucia

Primo

;Carta, Maria

Secondo

;Michalchuk, Adam A. L.;Delogu, Francesco

Penultimo

;Emmerling, Franziska

Ultimo

2024-01-01

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Abstract

Mechanochemistry is drawing attention from the pharmaceutical industry given its potential for sustainable material synthesis and manufacture. Scaling mechanochemical processes to industrial level remains a challenge due to an incomplete understanding of their underlying mechanisms. We here show how time-resolved in situ powder X-ray diffraction data, coupled with analytical kinetic modelling, provides a powerful approach to gain mechanistic insight into mechanochemical reactions. By using the ibuprofen-nicotinamide co-crystal mechanosynthesis as a benchmark system, we investigate the behaviour of the solids involved and identify the factors that promote the reaction. As mechanochemical mechanisms become increasingly clear, it promises to become a breakthrough in the industrial preparation of advanced pharmaceuticals.