EXPERIMENT 10 : TEST FOR HARDNESS AND

THICKNESS OF DIFFERENT TABLETS

OBJECTIVES :

• To be familiar with the use of Vernier

caliper and hardness testers

• To determine hardness and thickness of

different tablets and determine their
compliance with the USP Specifications.
DEFINITION:

Hardness Of Tablet (Crushing Strength)

-The force required to break a tablet in a diametric compression test.

Hardness Test
- Is used to test the breaking point and structural integrity of a tablet prior to
storage, transportation, and handling before usage.

NOTE : All Pharma Test tablet hardness testing instruments meet the latest
requirements of the USP and EP Pharmacopeia.
IMPORTANCE OF HARDNESS TEST :

- It is used parameter to control the tablet manufacturing

process or for compression force during manufacture, often
because the tablet machine is unable to measure
compression force.

INSTRUMENT USED :

• Stokes-Monsato Hardness Tester

• Strong Cobb Hardness Tester
• Pfizer Hardness Tester
• Erweka Hardness Tester
• Schleuniger Hardness Tester
Stokes-Monsato Hardness Tester

Tablet makers no longer need to rely on finger sensitivity or other “guesswork” methods, they can
measure tablet hardness directly in terms of kilograms of pressure require to crush the tablet.

Requiring only a modest investment, the standard unit is designed to test tablets ranging in size from
the smallest tablet size to ¾” diameter with a maximum thickness of 1/3”.
The Stokes Tablet Hardness Tester can be equipped with special parts to permit the
testing of larger diameter tablets, at higher pressures. These parts consist of the following:
• -Modified Head (or anvil): Will accommodate a full 7/8 inch diameter spherical tablet,
or up to 1 3/16 inch diameter flat-face or convex tablet.
• -Modified Duty Spring: Is capable of exerting a pressure of 60 kilograms—three times
greater than the standard spring, which is rated at 20 kilograms.

ACCEPTABLE RANGE :
• Ordinary Compressed Tablet – 4 to 10 kg
• Sublingual Tablet – 2kg
• Chewable Tablet – 2 kg
• Buccal Tablet – 10 kg
Strong Cobb Hardness Tester

The machine measures the force applied to the tablet and detects when it fractures .
Mechanism : Air pump
Range : 1.6 times better than stokes .
Pfizer Hardness Tester

It is a handy and portable instrument to test the hardness of the tablets which are
used in laboratories to test the lot of tablets during its manufacturing process to
observe the hardness of the tablets as per pharmacology standards. The hardness
can be tested up to the load of 20 kg and the maximum size of the tablets is
approx; 25mm which is placed in between the grips of the bolt and the piston as
per the picture and it is squeezed (press) through cross handle like scissors. During
pressing , the piston goes upward and push the dial needle. The dial needle stops
where the tablet breaks which shows the hardness of the tablets in kgs.

Mechanism : Hard pliers