Demulsifiers and methods for use in pharmaceutical applications

1. A composition comprising a pharmaceutical and a demulsifier comprising: an anionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkylsulfosuccinates, alkylsulfonates, alkylphosphonic acids, salts thereof, and combinations thereof; and a nonionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of ethylene oxide/propylene oxide copolymers, ethoxylated fatty acid esters of polyethylene glycol, terpene alkoxylates, modified alkanomides, and combinations thereof.

2. The composition of claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant is present from about 5% to about 95% by weight of the total surfactant.

3. The composition of claim 1 wherein the nonionic surfactant is present from about 5% to about 95% by weight of the total surfactant.

4. The composition of claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant is present from about 10% to about 80% by weight of the total surfactant.

5. The composition of claim 1 wherein the nonionic surfactant is present from about 10% to about 80% by weight of the total surfactant.

6. The composition of claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant is sodium dioctylsulfosuccinate.

7. The composition of claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant is an alkylsulfonate having from 10 to 18 carbon atoms.

8. The composition of claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant is selected from the group consisting of octylphosphonic acid, laurylphosphonic acid, salts thereof, and combinations thereof.

9. The composition of claim 1 wherein the nonionic surfactant is an ethylene oxide/propylene oxide copolymer selected from the group consisting of ethylene oxide/propylene oxide alkoxylates, ethylene oxide/propylene oxide block copolymers, and ethylene oxide/propylene oxide reverse copolymers.

10. The composition of claim 9 wherein the nonionic surfactant is an ethylene oxide/propylene oxide block copolymer of the general formula:

wherein “m” is from about 1 to about 50, “o” and “p” are each from about 1 to about 20.

11. The composition of claim 9 wherein the nonionic surfactant is an ethylene oxide/propylene oxide reverse copolymer of the general formula:

wherein “m” is from about 10 to about 60, and “n” is from about 0 to about 15.

12. The composition of claim 11 wherein “m” is about 27 and “n” is about 8.

13. A demulsifier composition useful for demulsifying a pharmaceutical composition of claim 9 comprising an anionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkylsulfosuccinates, alkylsulfonates, alkylphosphonic acids, salts thereof, and combinations thereof; and a nonionic surfactant which is an ethylene oxide/propylene oxide alkoxylate having the following formula:

wherein “d” is about 5 and “e” is about 8, and R 3 is a hydrocarbon chain containing from about 1 to about 22 carbon atoms.

14. A demulsifier composition useful for demulsifying a pharmaceutical composition comprising an anionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkylsulfosuccinates, alkylsulfonates, alkylphosphonic acids, salts thereof, and combinations thereof; and a non-ionic surfactant is a terpene alkoxylate having the following formula:

wherein R6 is methyl or ethyl, “n” is from about 20 to about 30, and “m” is from 0 to about 20.

15. The composition of claim 14 , wherein R 6 is methyl, “n” is from about 20 to 25, and “m” is from about 5 to about 10.

16. The composition of claim 1 wherein the nonionic surfactant is an ethoxylated fatty acid esters of polyethylene glycol of the general formulae:

wherein “x” is from about 1 to about 20, R4 is a hydrocarbon chain containing about 10 to 22 carbon atoms, and R5 is a hydrogen or a hydrocarbon chain containing about 1 to about 20 carbon atoms.

17. A demulsifier composition useful for demulsifying a pharmaceutical composition comprising an anionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkylsulfosuccinates, alkylsulfonates, alkylphosphonic acids, salts thereof, and combinations thereof; and a terpene alkoxylate having the following formula:

wherein R6 is methyl or ethyl, “n” is from about 20 to about 30, and “m” is from 0 to about 20.

18. A method for breaking an emulsion produced in the preparation of pharmaceuticals, the emulsion comprising a pharmaceutical, comprising contacting the emulsion with a demulsifier comprising

(a) an anionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkylsulfosuccinates, alkylsulfonates, alkylphosphonic acids, salts thereof, and combinations thereof;

(b) a nonionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of ethylene oxide/propylene oxide copolymers, ethoxylated fatty acids of polyethylene glycol, terpene alkoxylates, modified alkanolamides, and combinations thereof; or

(c) a combination of (a) and (b).

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the anionic surfactant is sodium dioctyl sulfosuccinate, an alkylsulfonate having 10 to 18 carbon atoms or sodium C10-C20 olefin sulfonate.

20. The method of claim 18 further comprising dispensing the demulsifier in a suitable solvent system prior to contacting the demulsifier with the emulsion.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the solvent system comprises glycols, glycol ethers, alcohols, water, hydrocarbons, aromatic solvents, fatty acid methyl esters, and combinations thereof.

22. The method of claim 18 wherein the emulsion is a water-in-solvent emulsion.

23. The method of claim 18 wherein the nonionic surfactant is an ethylene oxide/propylene oxide copolymer selected from the group consisting of ethylene oxide/propylene oxide alkoxylates, ethylene oxide/propylene oxide block copolymers, and ethylene oxide/propylene oxide reverse copolymers.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the terpene alkoxylate has the following formula:

wherein R6 is methyl or ethyl, “n” is from about 20 to about 30, and “m” is from 0 to about 20.

25. The composition of claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant comprises sodium C 10 -C 20 olefin sulfonate.