Title: tablet coating
Long Title: IUPAC Gold Book - tablet coating
DOI: 10.1351/goldbook.15242
Status: current

Definition
Solid layers based typically on cellulose derivatives and may include plasticizers and pigments. They are usually employed for one or more of the following reasons:

Protection of the ingredients (from light or moisture).
Masking the bad taste of the drug.
Masking possible batchwise differences in the appearance of raw materials and hence allaying possible patient concern over tablets of differing appearance.
Coating confers mechanical strength and facilitates handling.
Colored coating aids in the rapid identification of a product.
Functional film coating is used to impart enteric or controlled-release properties to the tablet.


Related Terms
- controlled-release: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/15163
- enteric coating: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/15185

Source
- PAC, 2009, 81, 971. 'Glossary of terms related to pharmaceutics (IUPAC Recommendations 2009)' on page 998 (https://doi.org/10.1351/PAC-REC-04-10-14)

Other Outputs
- html: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/15242/html
- json: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/15242/json
- xml: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/15242/xml

Citation: Citation: 'tablet coating' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. 10.1351/goldbook.15242
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Accessed: 2026-05-10T19:14:13+00:00