Synthesis control and characterization of hydroxyapatite prepared by wet precipitation process

Abstract

Several techniques have been utilized for the preparation of hydroxyapatite (HA) and other calcium phosphates for the development of biomaterials. It is vital to know the reaction kinetics to be able to control the material obtained by the aqueous solution route. In the present work, HA has been produced by different wet precipitation processes and different experimental conditions. Calcium hydroxide, calcium phosphate, ammonium phosphate and phosphoric acid were used as reagents. The precipitate was dried at 100 °C overnight and then some samples were treated at 900 °C for 2 h. The powder samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. SEM photomicrographs showed an aggregate powder, granular to dense and suggested typical columnar particles. Qualitative XRF showed that the main components of HA powders were calcium and phosphorus. Pure HA and other phases according to processing parameters were observed by XRD analysis.