Near infrared absorption spectroscopy calibration

Near-infrared spectroscopy is quickly becoming a preferred technique for the quantitative identification of an active component within a formulated tablet. In addition, the same spectroscopic measurement can be used to determine water content since the combination band of water displays a fairly large absorption band in the near-IR. In one such study [41] the concentration of ceftazidime pentahydrate and water content in physical mixtures has been determined. Due to the ease of sample preparation, near-IR spectra were collected on 20 samples, and subsequent calibration curves were constructed for active ingredient and water content. An interesting aspect of this study was the determination that the calibration samples must be representative of the production process. When calibration curves were constructed from laboratory samples only, significant prediction errors were noted. When, however, calibration curves were constructed from laboratory and production samples, realistic prediction values were determined ( 5%). 

Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), a technique based on absorption and reflectance of monochromatographic radiation by samples over a wavelength range of 400-2500 run, has been successfully applied for food composition analysis, for food quality assessment, and in pharmaceutical production control. NIRS can be used to differentiate various samples via pattern recognitions. The technique is fast and nondestructive method that does not require sample preparation and is very simple to use compared too many other analytical methods such as HPLC. The drawback of NIRS, however, is that the instrument has to be calibrated using a set of samples typically 20-50 with known analyte concentrations obtained by suitable reference methods such as FIPLC in order to be used for quantitative analyses. Simultaneous quantification of the... 

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