ANALYSIS OF INTACT TABLETS BY NEAR-INFRARED REFLECTANCE SPECTROMETRY.

A typical pharmaceutical tablet is too small for analysis in an ordinary NIRA instrument. An intact tablet will not begin to fill a solid-sample holder designed for use with a powedered sample. Grinding the sample is likewise unproductive, as a single tablet also does not provide enough powder for the sample cup. Potential NIRA applications such as the detection of product tampering and even routine quality control are complicated by this grinding requirement. A method of analyzing single, intact tablets using a double-reflecting aluminum sample holder is described. The integrity of the sample is preserved during the analysis, allowing the tablet to be sold or consumed after the procedure.