Particle Analysis in Pharmaceutical Applications

Particle Morphology – More than Just Size!

Although particles have traditionally been analyzed almost exclusively by number and size, the importance of particle morphology is increasingly recognized. In the past, particle morphology was analyzed using manual microscopic methods after filtering and slide preparation. Although manual microscopy can provide the necessary particle morphology, it is laborious and results are operator-dependent.

MFI automates the image processing function to provide consistent and optimal particle morphological information. The following parameters are available.

Particles	Description
Area	The total number of pixels representing the particle

ECD	The diameter of a circle occupying the same area as the particle

Intensity Mean	The average intensity of all pixels representing the particle

Intensity STD	The standard deviation of intensity of all pixels representing the particle

Intensity Maximum	The maximum intensity of all pixels representing the particle

Intensity Minimum	The minimum intensity of all pixels representing the particle

Perimeter	The total number of perimeter pixels around the objects perimeter

Circularity	The circumference of an equivalent area circle divided by the actual perimeter of the particle

Maximum Feret Diameter	The longest dimension of the particle independent of the particle’s angular rotation

Aspect Ratio	The ratio of the longest dimension to the perpendicular dimension at the midpoint.

Users can also combine parameters and use software filters to isolate specific particle morphologies and sub-populations.