What is Mass Transfer drying?

We dry biologics

Mass Transfer drying is a new way of drying biologics that eliminates heat stress, heat degradation and the need for elevated temperatures. Unlike other pharmaceutical drying systems it uses Mass Transfer, but not Heat Transfer - drying delicate biologics from vaccines to protein therapeutics as particle-engineered powders that are thermostable and also highly suitable for novel administration routes.

Versatile

LaminarPace has enabled the formulation of a wide range of biomolecules including mRNA, proteins, peptides, antibodies, lipids and enzymes. The system has worked successfully with a range of excipients, and adjuvants and antigens.

Thermostable

Mass Transfer drying offers advanced thermostability outcomes. Ziccum has worked with a wide range of regulatory definitions of thermostability including ICH (International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use) and WHO guidelines.

Novel

LaminarPace’s particle-engineered powders enable the formulation of a number of novel administration routes beyond injection. It enables greater control over key properties of the dried particles, such as particle size. Its particle-engineered powders are fast- dissolving and well-suited to administration via inhalation, microarray patches, topical application through the skin or reconstitution for intravenous administration.

Meeting the need for heat-free drying

There has long been an unmet need for a drying methodology for biopharmaceuticals that avoids extreme temperatures, whether heat or cryogenic. LaminarPace meets that need.

Both vaccines and biologics are vulnerable to degradation from heat stress. Retaining API activity at the temperatures used in today’s legacy drying technologies remains a challenge for drug developers and formulation specialists. LaminarPace meets that need.

Its Mass Transfer drying technique remove the mass  of moisture from particles of vaccine and biologic solutions, drying them into fast-dissolving particles with their API biologically active and intact.

Explore LaminarPace ambient drying further 

 

“Everyone was always looking for ways to carry out an efficient drying process without using heat.

That is exactly what LaminarPace does. For pharmaceutical formulation scientists this is a dream machine.”

- Fabrice Rose, Scientific Director Ziccum

Step inside LaminarPace

So how exactly does it work? LaminarPace creates an efficient drying process by generating mass transfer, rather than heat transfer. This happens directly after evaporation and removes the need for elevated temperatures. Mass transfer is a highly efficient drying method. Our optimization tests demonstrate that following drying less than 2% of absolute humidity is left inside LaminarPace’s drying column.

To best understand the process, let’s follow the drying path of a single droplet of biomolecule.

Follow the flow - from  liquid droplet to dry particle

Follow the drying path of a single droplet as it is dry-formulated inside LaminarPace.

A fine vaporized spray of liquid solution droplets is released in a pulse at room temperature and great speed from the nebulizer at the top of LAPA’s inner drying column

As the droplet circles downward fast-moving laminar flows of nitrogen gas circle around it

These laminar flows quickly evaporate the outer mass of moisture that envelops the droplet’s API

This moisture is transferred through LAPA’s membrane to the system’s outer column, where a countercurrent of more turbulent nitrogen removes it

The remaining particles of biologically active dry powder are collected in a powder collector at the bottom of the drying column - their moisture removed; their API intact