Application of the small-circle net method to the study of bovine bone and tooth fabrics

Abstract

X-ray fabric analysis by means of the small-circle net technique has been shown to be useful for obtaining quantitative information on fabric anisotropy of bone and teeth. In particular, a study of enamel fabric for right I 1 of Bos taurus has shown that the c-axes of apatite crystallites are distributed in a cone-like fashion about the tooth axis; the cone half-angle is approximately 45 ° and cone apex pointing toward the tooth root. The results for the dentine fabric of the same tooth were not so conclusive, but present data indicate that the c-axes of apatite crystallites are not randomly oriented but roughly alligned parallel to the tooth axis, at least in certain parts of the dentine core. A study of apatite fabric in a tibia of Bos taurus has shown a pronounced anisotropy of apatite arrangement with crystal c-axes being alligned parallel to the bone axis. In addition to the normal technique, simple X-ray tests have confirmed the patterns observed for tooth enamel and for the bone, but the dentine fabric of the tooth cannot with certainty be regarded, as established.