Selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing process: Influence of model design on the properties of zolpidem tartrate tablets

Abstract

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) is an innovative additive manufacturing technology in the field of pharmaceuticals that has the potential to provide small batches of patient-tailored medicines (Wang et al., 2021). One of the newest and most advanced 3DP techniques is selective laser sintering (SLS), a one-step manufacturing process that uses a laser to selectively sinter powder particles into layers and create a 3D structure of a solid dosage form. Depending on the 3D design of the object, the laser is focused to draw specific patterns on the surface of the powder. Once the first layer is sintered, a fresh layer of powder is sprinkled on top so that a new layer can be sintered (Allahham et al., 2020). The aim of this study was to formulate and investigate the influence of the model design on the properties of zolpidem tartrate (ZT) tablets produced by the SLS 3DP process.