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The aim of the study was to prepare indomethacin nanocrystal-loaded, 3D-printed, fast-dissolving oral polymeric film formulations. Nanocrystals were produced by the wet pearl milling technique, and 3D printing was performed by the semi-solid extrusion method. Hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) was the film-forming polymer, and glycerol the plasticizer. In-depth physicochemical characterization was made, including solid-state determination, particle size and size deviation analysis, film appearance evaluation, determination of weight variation, thickness, folding endurance, drug content uniformity, and disintegration time, and drug release testing. In drug nanocrystal studies, three different stabilizers were tested. Poloxamer F68 produced the smallest and most homogeneous particles, with particle size values of 230 nm and PI values below 0.20, and was selected as a stabilizer for the drug-loaded film studies. In printing studies, the polymer concentration was first optimized with drug-free formulations. The best mechanical film properties were achieved for the films with HPMC concentrations of 2.85% (w/w) and 3.5% (w/w), and these two HPMC levels were selected for further drug-loaded film studies. Besides, in the drug-loaded film printing studies, three different drug levels were tested. With the optimum concentration, films were flexible and homogeneous, disintegrated in 1 to 2.5 min, and released the drug in 2–3 min. Drug nanocrystals remained in the nano size range in the polymer films, particle sizes being in all film formulations from 300 to 500 nm. When the 3D-printed polymer films were compared to traditional film-casted polymer films, the physicochemical behavior and pharmaceutical performance of the films were very similar. As a conclusion, 3D printing of drug nanocrystals in oral polymeric film formulations is a very promising option for the production of immediate-release improved- solubility formulations.

Oleogels is a novel semi-solid system, focusing on its composition, formulation, characterization, and diverse pharmaceutical applications. Due to their stability, smoothness, and controlled release qualities, oleogels are frequently utilized in food, cosmetics, and medicinal products. Oleogels are meticulously formulated by combining oleogelators like waxes, fatty acids, ethyl cellulose, and phytosterols with edible oils, leading to a nuanced understanding of their impact on rheological characteristics. They can be characterized by methods like visual inspection, texture analysis, rheological measurements, gelation tests, and microscopy. The applications of oleogels are explored in diverse fields such as nutraceuticals, cosmetics, food, lubricants, and pharmaceutics. Oleogels have applications in topical, transdermal, and ocular drug delivery, showcasing their potential for revolutionizing drug administration. This review aims to enhance the understanding of oleogels, contributing to the evolving landscape of pharmaceutical formulations. Oleogels emerge as a versatile and promising solution, offering substantial potential for innovation in drug delivery and formulation practices. Graphical Abstract

Semi-solid processing of aluminum alloys is a well-known manufacturing technique able to combine high production rates with parts quality, resulting in high performance and reasonable component costs. The advantages offered by semi-solid processing are due to the shear thinning behavior of the thixotropic slurries during the mold filling. This is related to the microstructure of these slurries consisting of solid, nondendritic, near-globular primary particles surrounded by a liquid matrix. This paper presents a review on the formation of this nondendritic microstructure, reports on the different proposed mechanisms that might be responsible, and illustrates the relationship between microstructure and properties, in particular, tensility, fatigue, wear, and corrosion resistance.

Semi-solid metal (SSM) processing has been an attractive method for manufacturing near-net-shape components with high integrity due to its distinct advantages over conventional forming technologies. SSM processing employs a mixture of solid phase and liquid metal slurries and/or non-dendritic feedstocks as starting materials for shaping. Since the original development from 1970s, a number of SSM processes have been developed for shaping components using the unique rheological and/or thixotropic properties of metal alloys in the semi-solid state, in which the globular solid particles of primary phase are dispersed into a liquid matrix. In this paper, the progress of the development of shaping technologies and the formation of non-dendritic microstructure in association with the scientific understanding of microstructural evolution of non-dendritic phase are reviewed, in which the emphasis includes the new development in rheomoulding, rheo-mixing, rheo/thixo-extrusion and semi-solid twin roll casting, on the top of traditional rheocasting, thixoforming and thixomoulding. The advanced microstructural control technologies and processing methods for different alloys are also compared. The mechanisms to form non-dendritic microstructures are summarised from the traditional understanding of mechanical shear/bending and dendrite multiplication to the spheroidal growth of primary phase under intensively forced convection. In particular, the formation of spheroidal multiple phases in eutectic alloys is summarised and discussed. The concluding remarks focus on the current challenges and developing trends of semi-solid processing.

Semi-solid metal processing (SSMP) is an ideal method of producing high-quality products with fewer defects in casting technology. Viscosity is the most important physical and chemical property for the flow behaviour of the SSMP. Currently, there are several approaches, both theoretical and experimental, to evaluate the viscosity of semi-solid metals. This paper comprehensively reviews the single point and multi-point viscometry for SSMP. Features, similarities, and limitations of different viscometers for SSMP applications are then compared. The effect of influencing factors on the viscosity behaviour of SSMP is also highlighted. The importance of the non-dendritic globular microstructure and the instantaneous drop in viscosity caused by the scattering of solid particles during SSMP are explained. It is expected that the study will assist the researcher in identifying the best method of viscosity measurement during SSMP.

In the present review, the main findings on the rheological characterization of semi-solid metals (SSM) are presented. Experimental results are a fundamental basis for the development of comprehensive and accurate mathematics used to design the process effectively. For this reason, the main experimental procedures for the rheological characterization of SSM are given, together with the models most widely used to fit experimental data. Subsequently, the material behavior under steady state condition is summarized. Also, non-viscous properties and transient conditions are discussed since they are especially relevant for the industrial semi-solid processing.

A molecular dynamics-based model of semi-solid formation from liquid melt of the novel Al–15Mg 2 Si–4.5Si composite is reported in the present study. Growth kinetics of Mg 2 Si phase is studied here at the pre-nucleation stage i.e., prior to the emergence of a stable nucleus. Moreover, insight has been grabbed on semi-solid processing of the said composite at atomic level, wherein the dynamic evolution of the Mg–Si clusters has been studied during cooling/semi solid slurry generation as well as during isothermal holding stage. The effect of variation of cooling rate on the number of clusters, average size of clusters and density of clusters has been investigated. The average size of clusters decays exponentially with cooling rate, whereas the average atomic density of clusters decays following a power-law relation with cooling rate. The change of the thermodynamic parameters (enthalpy and potential energy) during the phase transformation from liquid to semi-solid state are determined here, which are then employed to determine the value of interfacial free energy of Mg 2 Si-melt interface in the Al–15Mg 2 Si–4.5Si composite, along with the parameters obtained from the dynamic evolution of Mg-Si clusters. The paper also reports the temporal evolution of solid content within the melt, corresponding to the Mg 2 Si phase, during slurry generation as well as during isothermal holding stage.

The rapid development of the electronics market necessitates energy storage devices characterized by high energy density and capacity, alongside the ability to maintain stable and safe operation under harsh conditions, particularly elevated temperatures. In this study, a semi‐solid‐state electrolyte (SSSE) for Li‐metal batteries (LMB) is synthesized by integrating metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as host materials featuring a hierarchical pore structure. A trace amount of liquid electrolyte (LE) is entrapped within these pores through electrochemical activation. These findings demonstrate that this structure exhibits outstanding properties, including remarkably high thermal stability, an extended electrochemical window (5.25 V vs Li/Li+), and robust lithium‐ion conductivity (2.04 × 10−4 S cm−1), owing to the synergistic effect of the hierarchical MOF pores facilitating the storage and transport of Li ions. The Li//LiFePO4 cell incorporating prepared SSSE shows excellent capacity retention, retaining 97% (162.8 mAh g−1) of their initial capacity after 100 cycles at 1 C rate at an extremely high temperature of 95 °C. It is believed that this study not only advances the understanding of ion transport in MOF‐based SSSE but also significantly contributes to the development of LMB capable of stable and safe operation even under extremely high temperatures. Integrating hierarchically porous metal‐organic frameworks with varying pore sizes establishes two distinct Li+ transport pathways for a trace amount of liquid electrolyte confined in these pores. It creates a semi‐solid‐state electrolyte characterized by high thermal and electrochemical stability, as well as Li‐ion conductivity, thereby guaranteeing stable cycling performance of Li//LiFePO4 cells even at extremely high temperatures like 95 °C.

This study aimed to evaluate and compare, using the methodology of Franz diffusion cells, the ketoprofen (KTP) releasing profiles of two formulations: A gel and a conventional suspension. The second aim was to show that this methodology might be easily applied for the development of semi-solid prototypes and claim proof in pre-formulation stages. Drug release analysis was carried out under physiological conditions (pH: 5.6 to 7.4; ionic strength 0.15 M; at 37 °C) for 24 h. Three independent vertical Franz cells were used with a nominal volume of the acceptor compartment of 125 mL and a diffusion area of 2.5 cm2. Additionally, two different membranes were evaluated: A generic type (regenerated cellulose) and a transdermal simulation type (Strat-M®). The KTP permeation profiles demonstrated that depending on the membrane type and the vehicle used, the permeation is strongly affected. High permeation efficiencies were obtained for the gel formulation, and the opposite effect was observed for the suspension formulation. Moreover, the permeation studies using Strat-M membranes represent a reproducible methodology, which is easy to implement for pre-formulation stage or performance evaluation of semi-solid pharmaceutical products for topical or transdermal administration.

In this study, we present an integrated intelligent tactile sensing platform designed to digitize the complex human sensory perception of semi‐solid formulations by quantifying their dynamic frictional behavior. To overcome the subjectivity of traditional sensory panels, our platform utilizes a tactile friction sensor to capture time‐dependent spreading dynamics with high precision. By applying exponential decay analysis to the raw frictional data, we extracted four physically interpretable parameters: static response peak, decay amplitude, decay rate, and plateau level. These parameters reflect distinct tactile characteristics such as spreading, lubrication transition, and residue. Multivariate regression analysis demonstrates a hierarchical predictive performance for tactile attributes. Primary attributes such as smoothness, stickiness, and thickness exhibited strong correlations with R2 values exceeding 0.82. Secondary attributes maintained reliable predictive accuracy between 0.72 and 0.74. Notably, residue achieved a significant correlation of 0.62, quantifying a complex sensory dimension that is traditionally difficult to measure mechanically. These findings demonstrate that time‐dependent frictional dissipation more effectively represents tactile perception dynamics than conventional single‐point analyses. Overall, this approach provides a practical and reproducible framework for predicting multiple sensory attributes from a single measurement, with broad applicability in the digitization of cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. This study presents a tactile sensing platform that digitizes human sensory perception of semi‐solid formulations via frictional decay dynamics. By extracting mechanistic parameters from time‐dependent friction profiles, the system achieves high‐precision prediction of sensory attributes (R2 up to 0.85). The platform demonstrates broad applicability across cosmetics and pharmaceutical ointments, offering a robust tool for objective topical product characterization.