Preparation of carbonate apatite scaffolds using different carbonate solution and soaking time

Abstract

The aim of this study is to fabricate CO3Ap scaffolds using a dissolution-precipitation reaction during hydrothermal treatment. Beta-tricalcium phosphate (?-TCP) was used as a precursor instead of the commonly used alpha-tricalcium phosphate (?-TCP). Here, the CO3Ap scaffold fabrication was accomplished in two steps: i) fabrication of ?-TCP scaffold using a combination of direct foaming and a sacrificial template and ii) hydrothermal conversion of the ?-TCP scaffold at 200?C in 2mol/l NaHCO3 and Na2CO3 aqueous solutions for 2-10 days. The effect of two different solutions was identified in the dissolution-precipitation reaction. CO3Ap scaffold with 8.95wt.% carbonate content was successfully fabricated using a NaHCO3 solution. The average pore size of the scaffold was approximately 180 ?m with 72% porosity. The average compressive strength of the CO3Ap scaffold was 0.7MPa. Based on the compressive strength and carbonate content results, NaHCO3 aqueous solutions were chosen as carbonate sources for phase transformation to fabricate a CO3Ap scaffold over 6 days.