Stephan Ta

Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Technology

Ottergemsesteenweg 460
B-9000 Gent (Belgium)
Tel.: +32-9-264.8105
E-mail: stephan.ta@ugent.be

Biography

Stephan Ta graduated as chemist in 2020 from University of Southern Denmark, where he obtained his Master of Science in Chemistry. For his master’s thesis, he evaluated the combined dissolution/permeation behavior of enabling formulations using biopredictive in vitro models. After graduation he started working in the pharmaceutical industry. In 2024, he started his PhD research on processing of directly compressible amorphous solid dispersions via spray drying.

Summary of Research Project

Spray drying is an established technique for particle engineering, enabling the creation of particles with specific attributes and solid state. The ability to create amorphous particles makes spray drying a widely applied technique for the manufacturing of amorphous solid dispersions (ASDs). While ASDs are an effective strategy to improve the solubility and bioavailability of poorly water-soluble drugs, direct compression of spray dried ASDs remains challenging. This project aims to systematically explore the potential of spray drying as a scalable manufacturing strategy to produce directly compressible ASDs. Through formulation design and optimization of process parameters, spray drying of directly compressible ASDs will be evaluated and compared to conventional strategies such as roller compaction. The ultimate goal is to develop a decision-tree, defining the preferred manufacturing route for the downstream processing of ASDs into tablets.