Sizing Up the Benefits of Sterile Drug Manufacturing Techniques

A comparison of several sterile processing techniques, including aseptic isolators, restricted access barrier systems and aseptic Split Butterfly Valve technology has been undertaken by Christian Dunne, ChargePoint Technology.

The article appears in Pharmaceutical Manufacturing magazine. Here is an extract:

“The aseptic Spilt Butterfly Valve (SBV) provides a safe method of transferring product from one container, process vessel, Isolator or RABS to another while ensuring the sterility of the transfer is not compromised.

Fundamentally, the SBV consists of two halves, the active (Alpha) unit and the passive (Beta) unit. Each half consists of half of the ‘butterfly’ disc. The active unit is attached to the stationary process equipment such as a mixing vessel, while the passive unit is attached to the mobile container such as an intermediate bulk container (IBC) or flexible bag. When the two parts are brought together, the discs halves join to form a single disc, sealing any surfaces which may have been exposed to a compound during transfer. The two discs then operate as one disc and can be opened to allow transfer of product from one location to another.”

To access the article, see: Pharmaceutical Manufacturing

Posted by Dr. Tim Sandle