EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing for Continuous Manufacturing and Crystallisation

该提案将建立一个国家多学科中心，研究晶体和粉末及其工业制造、性能和使用所带来的挑战。粉末、颗粒、晶体和构成它们的分子在化学和制药工业中是重要的，它们是制造从药物到油墨、颜料、油漆到电脑屏幕等一系列材料的中间阶段和最终产品。至关重要的是，晶体、颗粒和粉末的结构和性质控制着最终产品的制造难易程度、功能和性能，因此，能够使这些材料重现是很重要的。首先，通过了解组成晶体的分子的排列方式。许多分子可以以不同的方式聚集在一起，形成几种不同的晶体形式，尽管存在相同的分子，但这可能会极大地影响物理性质。在晶体形成过程中控制这一点至关重要，因为错误的形状可能会影响药片被吞下后释放到体内的药物量。其次，随着晶体的生长，其尺寸（微米或毫米），形状或形态（平面或圆形）对某些应用至关重要，特别是当许多晶体颗粒聚集在一起形成粉末并影响材料随后制造成油漆或墨水的难度时。这些挑战是至关重要的，因为目前制造商由于采用传统的批处理方法而难以形成晶体并控制其颗粒和粉末特性。为了解决这些问题，该中心旨在通过研究令人兴奋的晶体形成和颗粒和粉末生产的新连续方法来彻底改变当前的工艺，这些方法适用于当前但重要的是未来的产品，如纳米材料。此外，该中心将探索如何将已建立的分子合成方法与连续结晶过程最好地结合起来，以及如何将连续制造的晶体分离、干燥并转移到后续配方和最终产品制造阶段，同时保持其精心优化的性能。为了最大限度地利用这些技术变革，中心还必须了解这种变革将对公司处理这方面业务的方式产生的影响。这将确保最大限度地发挥经济潜力。为了实现这一目标，该中心由来自格拉斯哥、爱丁堡、剑桥、巴斯等全国7所顶尖大学的14名杰出研究人员组成的多学科团队组成。除此之外，英国的3家大型制药公司和许多小型技术驱动型公司将提供200万英镑的工业支持和投资。这提供了从化学和化学工程到药学和系统管理的学术和工业专业知识的结合，能够从多个角度有力地解决问题。该中心的目标是在一系列领域提供具有改进性能的新连续制造技术。晶体形成、颗粒和粉末特性的控制至关重要，但一个关键目标也将是开发更简单、更快速的技术。这样的结合将允许更快的产品开发和更便宜、更清洁、更环保的制造过程。该中心将为英国化学和制药工业提供这些技术，从而使该部门保持在产品开发和制造的国际前沿，在就业和收入方面具有明显的国家经济效益。通过更好的和新的药品以及改进的和新的消费产品，也将产生国家和国际利益，这将有助于全球社会。

This proposal will establish a national multidisciplinary centre for research into crystals and powders and the challenges presented by their industrial manufacture, properties and use. Powders, particles, crystals and the molecules they are made of are important in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries as intermediate stages and final products in the manufacture of a range of materials from drugs to inks and pigments to paints to computer screens. Crucially, the structure and properties of crystals, particles and powders control the ease of manufacture, function and performance of the final product and it is therefore important to be able to make these materials reproducibly. Firstly, by understanding the ways in which the molecules, which make up the crystal pack together. Many molecules can adopt several distinct crystal forms by packing together in different ways, which can dramatically affect physical properties despite the fact the same molecule is present. It is vital to control this during crystal formation since the wrong form could for example, affect the amount of drug released by a tablet into the body after it is swallowed. Secondly as the crystal grows its size (micrometres or millimetres), shape, or morphology (flat or round) is critical for some applications especially when many crystal particles come together in a powder and impact on the ease with which the material is subsequently manufactured into a paint or ink for example. These challenges are critical as currently manufacturers struggle with crystal formation and control of their particle and powder properties due to the traditional batch methods they employ. To tackle these problems the Centre aims to revolutionise current processes by researching exciting new continuous methods of crystal formation and particle and powder production applicable to current but importantly also future products such as nanomaterials. In addition the Centre will explore how established methods for molecule synthesis are best integrated with continuous crystallisation processes and how continuously manufactured crystals are isolated, dried and transferred into subsequent formulation and final product manufacturing stages whilst preserving their carefully optimised properties. To maximize these technology changes the Centre must also understand the impact that such a transformation will have on the way companies approach this aspect of their business. This will ensure that the maximum economic potential is effectively exploited. To achieve this the Centre consists of a multidisciplinary team of 14 outstanding researchers from 7 leading Universities covering the country from Glasgow, to Edinburgh, to Cambridge, to Bath. In addition industrial support, interest and input (2 million) will be provided from 3 major pharmaceutical companies and many small technology driven companies within the UK. This provides a combination of academic and industrial expertise ranging from chemistry and chemical engineering to pharmacy and systems management capable of powerfully attacking the issues from many angles. The Centre's aim is to deliver new continuous manufacturing technologies with improved performance in a range of areas. Control of crystal formation and particle and powder properties is critical, however a key goal will also be the development of simpler and faster technologies. Such a combination will permit quicker product development and cheaper, cleaner and greener manufacturing processes. The Centre will deliver these technologies to the UK chemical and pharmaceutical industry thus maintaining this sector at the international forefront of product development and manufacture with obvious national economic benefits in terms of jobs and income. National and international benefits will also arise through better and new medicines and improved and new consumer products, which will assist the global community.