Particle Engineering with CO2-Expanded Solvents: The DELOS Platform

Compressed fluids and especially CO2-expanded solvents (a mixed solvent composed of CO2 dissolved in an organic solvent) present unique properties for the eco-efficient production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) with an exceptional control of the operational variables that allow tuning the final properties of the active compounds. The pharmaceutical industry nowadays is facing several challenges, as nearly 40 % of the newly discovered drugs are poorly soluble in water and, hence, present low bioavailability. In addition, there is a huge necessity to move to a more environmentally friendly way of product manufacturing. Therefore, the use of compressed fluid-based technology is a promising solution for the pharmaceutical industry. This chapter provides a general overview covering the properties of compressed fluids (CF), the most used CF-based processes, and a more comprehensive summary of the application of CO2-expanded solvents for the tailored crystallization of active compounds.