A new mineral–polymer composite (FCC-PCL) performance was assessed to produce complex geometries to aid in development of controlled release tablet formulations. The mechanical
characteristics of a developed material such as compactibility, compressibility and elastoplastic deformation were measured. The results and comparative analysis versus other common
excipients suggest efficient formation of a complex, stable and impermeable geometries for constrained drug release modifications under compression. The performance of the proposed
composite material has been tested by compacting it into a geometrically altered tablet (Tablet-In-Cup, TIC) and the drug release was compared to commercially available product. The TIC
device exhibited a uniform surface, showed high physical stability, and showed absence of friability. FCC-PCL composite had good binding properties and good compactibility. It was
possible to reveal an enhanced plasticity characteristic of a new material which was not present in the individual components. The presented FCC-PCL composite mixture has the potential to
become a successful tool to formulate controlled-release dosage solid forms.
Keywords: Mineral-polymer composite, elastoplastic deformation, geometrically modified release, tablet formulation, TIC device, dry-coated tablet, functionalized calcium
carbonate, polycaprolactone