PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

This paper presents a study on tabletting of Ficus deltoidea, a herb known as "Emas Cotek" in Malaysia and traditionally used for treating gout, hypertension and diabetes as well as to improve blood circulation and to reduce cholesterol and toxins levels in the body. Research has shown that this herb contains active compounds such as flavonoid, tetripenoids, tannins and phenols. For centuries, it was consumed at home through infusion and recently the herb was marketed in the form of tea sachet, capsules and tablets. The tablet is a universal form of delivery in modern medicine due to its ability to provide uniform product composition, particle size and density distributions, and to eliminate dust formation; and most importantly, it has a longer shelf life compared to the other forms of delivery. It is achieved by pressing a blend of ingredients into a tablet. In this study, a 13-mm-diameter cylindrical uniaxial die was used for tabletting. Pressures ranging from 7.5 to 75 MPa were applied to the herb powder. The effect of binder was investigated using Avicel, with compositions ranging from 10 to 60 % of the blend. The strength of the tabletted herb was then tested using an indirect tensile strength test, called diametrical compression test. The results were presented in the form of pressure-volume relationship and tensile strength. The experimental data was then compared to that of the prediction using a first order model. The results indicated that this simple approach can be used to understand the tabletting behaviour of the herb.