Uses of Compressed Air in Pharmaceutical Industry

Did you know that compressed air is used in the pharmaceutical industry?

Although this sector has extremely stringent hygiene standards, it is able to rely on compressed air systems for many applications and production processes.

Clean Air in Pharmaceutical Industry

Due to the high purity levels that are required during the manufacture of medicine and related products, the pharmaceutical industry mainly use oil-free air compressors for their applications.

Some of these applications include:

• Tablet Manufacturing
• Cleaning and Drying
• Clean Room

In this article, we will go into more detail about how compressed air is used in this variety of applications and explore the reasons why.

Uses of Compressed Air

Tablet Manufacturing

During the manufacture of tablets, compressed air comes into direct contact with the end product. It is used to mix the powder mixture, produce granules for the tablet press, and remove dust particles or faulty products after the tablets have been pressed.

Also, it is used during the coating stage at the end of the manufacturing process. Each different method during tablet manufacturing requires specific kinds of compressed air and choosing either lubricated or oil-free incorrectly can result in problems.

Cleaning and Drying

Cleaning and drying using compressed air takes place during production and packaging processes. The filter in the fluidised bed plants need to be cleaned during production, removing material residues by applying compressed air.

Medicines needs to be dried to remove solvents or moisture from the product, and the packaging needs to be especially clean before the medicine is filled. Vacuum pumps and dry ice blasting are used for these applications.

Clean Room

Compressed air can be used in all clean room classes, but it must comply with the quality of ambient air into which it is released. In clean room applications, air compressors are used for drying the washed packaging and filling liquids in accordance with the blow-fill-seal method. It can also be used as an energy carrier in motors and pumps.

Compressed Air in the Pharmaceutical Industry

One of the biggest industry sectors in the world and set to only grow even more, the compressed air industry will have to keep up with the pharmaceutical industry too.

At Air Power East, we provide a wide range of air compressors plus additional services such as servicing and installation. If you have any questions and require more information, please contact us today and see how we can help you.