Table 3.

Comparison between various solidification process of su-SEDDS.

Process	Physical State of Pre-Concentrate [213]	Solvent Use 1		Description/Advantages (A) and Disadvantages (D) [30,131,212]	Max Loading Capacity (%, w/w) 2 [30,213]		Suitable Drug Dose/Potency [30]	Self-Emulsification Rate [30]	Ref.
		O	X		Drug	Lipid Vehicle
Physical adsorption	L 3		√	Adsorption onto solid carrier using physical blending with a mixer -A: Easy and Low cost, Easy scale-up -D: Low adsorption efficiency (large amount of solid carrier) and exudation of liquid lipid by tablet compaction	10	80	Low dose, high potency	++	[68,108,119]
Granulation/pelletization followed by drying	L 3, SS 4, S 5	√		Similar with conventional wet granulation -A: Easy and low cost, Excellent powder property, Flexible applicable to various solid dosage forms (including controlled release system), Easy scale-up -D: Destabilization by high temperature for drying	-	-	Low dose, high potency	++	[5,127,211]
Spray drying	L 4, SS 4, S 5	√		Evaporation of solvent from atomized SEDDS with solid carrier -A: Narrow particle size distribution, Relatively easy scale-up -D: Destabilization or loss of drug and/or volatile component by high temperature for drying	50	60	Low dose, high potency	+++	[113,114,115,215,220]
Freeze drying or Spray freeze-drying	L 3, SS 4, S 5	√		Lyophilization of solvent (mainly aqueous) from frozen SEDDS with solid carrier -A: Prevent destabilization or loss of drug and/or volatile by heat -D: Destabilization of drug by freezing and lyophilization, Low process efficiency, particle aggregation and poor re-dispersibility	50	60	Low dose, high potency	+++	[221,222,223]
Spray congealing	SS 4, S 5		√	Spraying of molten formula with or without solid carrier into a cooling chamber -A: Prevent destabilization or loss of drug and/or volatile by heat, Solvent free -D: Destabilization of drug by freezing, Bad flow property, Limitations on the use of liquid lipids, particle aggregation and poor re-dispersibility	30	99	Low-medium dose	++	[224,225]
Melt granulation or Melt extrusion and spheronization	SS 4, S 5		√	High shear mixing at high temperature -A: High process efficiency, Solvent free -D: Destabilization or loss of drug and/or volatile component by high temperature for drying	60–80	50	Low-medium dose	++	[226,227]
Supercritical fluid (SCF)	L 3, SS 4, S 5	√	√	Adsorption and/or coating onto solid carrier using high diffusivity of SCF -A: Mild condition, High loading efficiency -D: High cost for development of commercial scale equipment	20	99	Low-medium dose	+++	[204,228,229]

¹ Whether the solvent is used or not, ² The percentage of the mass ratio of a drug or vehicle that can be maximally loaded in the formulation, ³ Liquid, ⁴ Semi-solid, ⁵ Solid.