From HPLC to Chemometric-Assisted Spectroscopy: A Comparative Study of Analytical Approaches

Document Type : Review Article

Authors

1 Department of Pharmaceutics, School of pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz,Iran.

2 Department of Drug and Food Control, Faculty of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

10.30476/tips.2026.107265.1300

Abstract

Abstract
Analytical techniques are crucial in pharmaceutical quality control, particularly in advanced drug delivery systems, where drug loading, release, and stability are critical parameters. Among the available techniques, High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) remains the established reference method for determining drug content. However, there is increasing interest in approaches that reduce analysis time and cost while maintaining compliance with validation requirements. This review compares HPLC with spectroscopic techniques, including ATR-FTIR, Raman, and UV–Vis, applied in combination with chemometric tools such as Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). These integrated methods are non-destructive, require minimal sample preparation, and allow quantification of active ingredients, detection of impurities, and assessment of formulation consistency. This study focuses on integrating chemometric techniques with spectroscopic methods and comparing their performance with that of HPLC, given evidence that chemometric-assisted spectroscopy can match the accuracy of HPLC while improving efficiency and sustainability. The review highlights the potential of these approaches in modern pharmaceutical analysis.

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