Almost all analytical labs supporting the Pharmaceutical industry will have both Thermal analysis tools and X-ray powder diffraction. So, what is the benefit of combining simultaneous DSC and XRD measurements into a single attachment. It turns out that having the simultaneous thermal and powder data on the same sample yields a wealth of information that is often not easily accessible using each analytical technique separately. In addition to a discussion on the system itself, some of the benefits that will be introduced include:
The DSC – XRD data are collected on the same sample at the same time so unusual thermal events can be directly associated with a powder pattern to assess any structural changes, and conversely, unusual changes in the powder pattern can be associated with a thermal trace to determine if the changes are truly structural (polymorphic) or just preferred orientation or ripening.
Broad thermal events like re-crystallization can contain multiple transitions through various metastable polymorphs. Using the thermal trace as a guide, more detailed XRD scans can be performed to tease out metastable polymorph structure and powder pattern fingerprints. This can be a rapid screening approach for novel solid forms.
The XRD-DSC unit also has controlled humidity which can be used to quickly bracket stability and storage conditions for APIs, intermediates, and drug products. In addition to opening a huge playground of thermodynamic conditions for solid form investigation.