Could mechanochemistry have saved Abbott Laboratories $250 million?

Ritonavir

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Ball milling solves problem of disappearing ritonavir polymorph

The disappearing polymorph of HIV drug ritonavir can now be recovered from its more stable nuisance form by a 15 minute ball milling procedure. Careful control of the milling conditions enabled researchers to manipulate the size and shape of ritonavir crystals to drive formation of the desired polymorph with complete selectivity.