{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T17:10:49Z","timestamp":1785431449299,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":47,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,23]],"date-time":"2026-06-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1782172800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100004504","name":"Research Council of Lithuania","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100004504","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02gs16m83","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Ministry of Education, Science and Sport of the Republic of Lithuania","award":["S-A-UEI-23-7"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["S-A-UEI-23-7"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pharmaceuticals"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Natural calcium carbonate materials such as R\u00fcgen chalk have a long history of use in balneology and rehabilitation, particularly for musculoskeletal disorders, yet their application remains largely confined to traditional, labour-intensive forms such as powders, suspensions, and packs, which limit usability and broader clinical translation. This study aimed to develop an alginate-based solid foam incorporating R\u00fcgen chalk and to evaluate how key formulation components influence its structural, mechanical, and thermal properties relevant for therapeutic use. Methods: Alginate\u2013chalk foams were prepared by mechanical mixing of a sodium alginate\u2013R\u00fcgen chalk paste with an amino acid-based surfactant, while in situ CO2 generation from D\u2013glucono\u2013\u03b4\u2013lactone (GDL) induced calcium-mediated alginate gelation and foam stabilization. A central composite design with response surface methodology was used to assess the effects of alginate, chalk, and Perlastan\u00ae\u2013GDL content on foam pH, overrun, firmness, springiness, pore volume, sphericity, pore density, specific internal surface area, and heat-loss time. Foam microstructure was characterized by optical microscopy and microcomputed tomography (\u00b5CT), and the thermal conductivity and cooling behaviour of the selected formulation were compared with therapeutic peat. Results: Stable, elastic solid foams with a three-dimensional porous architecture were obtained across the investigated composition range. Foam overrun (30.8\u201357.1%) was primarily governed by sodium alginate and R\u00fcgen chalk concentrations, while firmness (7.4\u201315.2 N) increased predominantly with alginate content, and springiness remained high (70\u201378%), indicating good elastic recovery. Response surface modelling and ANOVA confirmed sodium alginate as the dominant factor influencing both mechanical and structural properties, with statistically significant effects on overrun, firmness, springiness, heat loss, porosity, and specific internal surface. \u00b5CT analysis revealed that all foam formulations were predominantly composed of fine, closed-cell pores, with over 96% of pores having volumes below 0.5 mm3 and a consistent median pore volume of 0.02 mm3. Structural differences between formulations were governed primarily by pore number and spatial distribution rather than pore size. Strong correlations were identified between \u00b5CT-derived parameters, particularly between specific internal surface, porosity, and pore density, confirming that internal architecture is controlled by pore population rather than individual pore dimensions. Thermal analysis demonstrated that the optimized formulation exhibited thermal conductivity comparable to therapeutic peat and maintained clinically relevant temperatures (35\u201345 \u00b0C) for more than one hour. Based on predefined performance criteria (overrun \u2265 50%, firmness \u2264 10 N, heat loss \u2265 120 s), formulation 7 was identified as optimal, combining favourable mechanical properties, structural uniformity and thermal retention. Conclusions: Alginate-based solid foams incorporating R\u00fcgen chalk constitute a feasible and tunable platform that combines efficient mineral loading, elastic porosity, and effective heat retention, offering a practical and modern alternative to conventional mineral-based therapeutic applications in balneology and rehabilitation.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ph19070973","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,1]],"date-time":"2026-07-01T03:06:34Z","timestamp":1782875194000},"page":"973","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Alginate-Based Solid Foam Incorporating R\u00fcgen Chalk: A Novel Platform for Modern Application of Peloids"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"19","author":[{"given":"Mantas","family":"Jurkonis","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Pharmaceutical Technologies, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, LT-50162 Kaunas, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3358-6162","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Modestas","family":"\u017dilius","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Pharmaceutical Technologies, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, LT-50162 Kaunas, Lithuania"},{"name":"Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, LT-50161 Kaunas, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2947-8601","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Karolis","family":"Banionis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Architecture and Construction, Kaunas University of Technology, LT-44405 Kaunas, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8073-5597","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Elena","family":"Jasi\u016bnien\u0117","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Ultrasound Research Institute, Kaunas University of Technology, LT-51368 Kaunas, Lithuania"},{"name":"Department of Electronics Engineering, Kaunas University of Technology, LT-51368 Kaunas, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1744-2932","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jurga","family":"Bernatoniene","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Pharmaceutical Technologies, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, LT-50162 Kaunas, Lithuania"},{"name":"Department of Drug Technology and Social Pharmacy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, LT-50161 Kaunas, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"211","article-title":"Clinical efficacy and cost-effectiveness evidence of spa therapy in osteoarthritis. 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