The formulation of pullulan soft capsules was optimized. The effects of the pullulan to xanthan gum ratio, the water to compound gum ratio, and the glycerol to compound gum ratio on the dissolution rate of the capsule shell were investigated. A uniform design experiment was used to optimize the capsule shell formulation. The results showed that the maximum dissolution rate was achieved when the pullulan to xanthan gum ratio was 24.03:1, the glycerol content was 0.9 times that of the compound gum, and the water content was 7.56 times that of the compound gum.
Pululan, a plant-based gelling agent, was used as the main gelling agent for the soft capsule shell. The production process of soft capsules using pullulan as the main gelling agent was studied, and compared with soft capsules using gelatin as the shell gelling agent, in terms of disintegration time, oil leakage, content oxidation, and adhesion. The results showed that soft capsules using pullulan as the main gelling agent exhibited better disintegration time, content oxidation, adhesion, and oil leakage after a period of storage than soft capsules using gelatin.
