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. 2022 Mar 8;14(3):585.
doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14030585.

The Phenomenon of Drug Emulsion Carriers Compaction during Their Movement in Microstructures

Mariola M Błaszczyk  1 , Jerzy Sęk  1 , Łukasz Przybysz  1   2
Affiliations

The Phenomenon of Drug Emulsion Carriers Compaction during Their Movement in Microstructures

Mariola M Błaszczyk et al. Pharmaceutics. .

Abstract

The greatest challenges of modern pharmacology are the design of drugs with the highest possible efficacy of an active substance and with the lowest possible invasiveness for the whole organism. A good solution features the application of a bioactive substance in different carriers. The effectiveness of such preparations is determined not only by the properties of the drug, but primarily by the dynamics of carrier movement in the body. This is the reason why studies on the dispersed systems transport in micro- and nanostructures are becoming important. This paper presents a study of emulsion systems transport in microcapillaries. A dispersed phase thickening effect was observed during the process, which resulted in a concentration increase of the flowing emulsion, in some cases up to 10 times. This phenomenon directly influences transport dynamics of such substances in microstructures and should be taken into account when designing drug parameters (concentration, release time, and action range). The effect was investigated for three different emulsions concentrations and presented quantitatively. The scales of this phenomenon occurrence at different flow conditions were investigated, and their magnitudes were modelled and described. This allows the prediction of the flow resistance in the movement of given dispersion systems, as a function of the flow rate, the emulsion parameters, and the microchannel size.

Keywords: capillaries; drug delivery; emulsion carriers; emulsion flow; microfluidics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Transport of emulsions when: (a) the diameter of the dispersed phase is comparable in size to the channel diameter; (b) the average diameter of the droplets is much smaller than the channel diameter.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Photo of the test stand.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(a) Sequence of images taken during the flow of an emulsion with a concentration of 0.05 at a flow rate of 5 μL/h. (b) Changes in the droplet density ratio during the flow through the capillary for the emulsion with a concentration of 0.05 at a flow rate of 5 μL/h.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Dependence of the degree of compaction of the emulsion with a concentration of 0.05 on the liquid flow rate.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Dependence of the degree of compaction on the initial concentration of emulsion at a liquid flow rate of 10 μL/h.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Dependences of the compaction ratio on the Reynolds number for different emulsion concentrations.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Dependences of the actual concentration on the Re number of the liquid for different emulsion concentrations in zone I.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Dependences of the actual concentration on the Re number of the liquid for different emulsion concentrations in zone II.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Dependences of the actual concentration on the Re number of the liquid for different emulsion concentrations in zone III.
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