Fabrication of Carbonate Apatite Block through a Dissolution-Precipitation Reaction Using Calcium Hydrogen Phosphate Dihydrate Block as a Precursor.

Carbonate apatite (CO3Ap) block, which is a bone replacement used to repair defects, was fabricated through a dissolution-precipitation reaction using a calcium hydrogen phosphate dihydrate (DCPD) block as a precursor. When the DCPD block was immersed in NaHCO3 or Na2CO3 solution at 80 °C, DCPD converted to CO3Ap within 3 days. ß-Tricalcium phosphate was formed as an intermediate phase, and it was completely converted to CO3Ap within 2 weeks when the DCPD block was immersed in Na2CO3 solution. Although the crystal structures of the DCPD and CO3Ap blocks were different, the macroscopic structure was maintained during the compositional transformation through the dissolution-precipitation reaction. CO3Ap block fabricated in NaHCO3 or Na2CO3 solution contained 12.9 and 15.8 wt % carbonate, respectively. The diametral tensile strength of the CO3Ap block was 2 MPa, and the porosity was approximately 57% regardless of the carbonate solution. DCPD is a useful precursor for the fabrication of CO3Ap block.

Fabrication of calcite blocks from gypsum blocks by compositional transformation based on dissolution-precipitation reactions in sodium carbonate solution.

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) has been used as a bone substitute, and is a precursor for carbonate apatite, which is also a promising bone substitute. However, limited studies have been reported on the fabrication of artificial calcite blocks. In the present study, cylindrical calcite blocks (ϕ6×3mm) were fabricated by compositional transformation based on dissolution-precipitation reactions using different calcium sulfate blocks as a precursor. In the dissolution-precipitation reactions, both CaSO4·2H2O and CaSO4 transformed into calcite, a polymorph of CaCO3, while maintaining their macroscopic structure when immersed in 1mol/L Na2CO3 solution at 80°C for 1week. The diametral tensile strengths of the calcite blocks formed using CaSO4·2H2O and CaSO4 were 1.0±0.3 and 2.3±0.7MPa, respectively. The fabrication of calcite blocks using CaSO4·2H2O and CaSO4 proposed in this investigation may be a useful method to produce calcite blocks because of the self-setting ability and high temperature stability of gypsum precursors.