Thermal behavior study and decomposition kinetics of salbutamol under isothermal and non-isothermal conditions

The thermal decomposition of salbutamol (β₂ — selective adrenoreceptor) was studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetry/derivative thermogravimetry (TG/DTG). It was observed that the commercial sample showed a different thermal profile than the standard sample caused by the presence of excipients. These compounds increase the thermal stability of the drug. Moreover, higher activation energy was calculated for the pharmaceutical sample, which was estimated by isothermal and non-isothermal methods for the first stage of the thermal decomposition process. For isothermal experiments the average values were E _act=130 kJ mol⁻¹ (for standard sample) and E _act=252 kJ mol⁻¹ (for pharmaceutical sample) in a dynamic nitrogen atmosphere (50 mL min⁻¹). For non-isothermal method, activation energy was obtained from the plot of log heating rates vs. 1/T in dynamic air atmosphere (50 mL min⁻¹). The calculated values were E _act=134 kJ mol⁻¹ (for standard sample) and E _act=139 kJ mol⁻¹ (for pharmaceutical sample).