This experience helped me strengthen my freeze-drying knowledge and helped me overcome all the difficulties found during the whole process. I now have an immense feeling of pride and satisfaction.
Lyonuc is a new vacuum nucleation induction method in the freeze-drying process suitable for any type of freeze-dryer without modifying its main elements or adding gases or external substances. After years of research, Telstar’s innovation department has unveiled the solution for effectively inducing the start of nucleation in the freeze-drying process which, using prescriptions adapted to the specifications of each product, enables the pharmaceutical industry to run the freeze-drying process of product batches more efficiently, quickly, productively and uniformly. This innovative method has been promoted and demonstrated at relevant specialized exhibitions taking place over the course of this year. Maria Santafe, Process Laboratory Engineer, has co-led the professional team in charge of this new high-added value project.
What are the key challenges of this project?
One of the challenges when I was developing Lyonuc, was to understand the physics of nucleation, how vacuum affects the product and promotes the controlled nucleation. Secondly a key challenge was to research and find a solution to avoid the aesthetics defects of a product when nucleation was induced. This primarily involved blow ups, which was a difficult issue to overcome.
When the removal of blow ups had been achieved, other cosmetic defects appeared in the form of flakes and craters. So the challenge was to add or modify the process which avoids both of these kinds of defects.
Finally, the last aim was to find a robust high quality and completed new product.
How would you describe the uniqueness of this project?
The Lyonuc process controls the ice nucleation temperature and the event instant when it is stochastic. Controlling something that is random gives us added value. It is true that there are other kinds of processes which control and induces the nucleation, but all of them need extra equipment, devices and requirements out of the known freeze-drier. We don’t, Telstar achieve it without any extra equipment, devices and requirements.
What is the impact that this innovative method could have in the development of the lyophilization field and the pharmaceutical industry in the middle term?
This product offers to improve freeze-drying recipes. You will be able to design a recipe by which, through nucleation temperature you will set the best internal product structure, depending on the product and the clients requirements and objectives. The productivity gains will be one of the main effects.
What do you get from this experience?
This experience helped me strengthen my freeze-drying knowledge and helped me overcome all the difficulties found during the whole process. I now have an immense feeling of pride and satisfaction.
