Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 February 2011
Calcium phosphates materials are widely used to treat the bones defects. HA bioceramics traditionally used in medicine has some serious disadvantage – week resorbility properties. Calcium phosphate cements seems to be promising compounds to replace conventional ceramics. High macroporosity of hardened materials leads to low mechanical strength. The main objective of present work was a development of new chemically bonded materials based on α-tricalcium phosphate (α-TCP) and hydroxylapatite phase. The main idea was to combine the benefit of ceramics technology (compacting of powders to reduce the starting macroporosity) to improve the materials strength with advantages of cement product (small resorbable calcium phosphate particles). α-Ca3(PO4)2-based biocements were synthesized with initial composition of HA, α- and β-TCP containing 80% wt. of TCP phase. The rate of α-TCP transformation to apatite phase during setting reaction was about 20% wt. in case of cylindrical samples (8mm × 8 mm) at 60°C for 50 hours. The fabricated TCP – bio-composites demonstrated high mechanical strength and stiffness characteristic. Most efficient results were achieved with chitosan biopolymer containing samples (σc = 120 MPa).