Apatite wollastonite-titanium biocomposites: Synthesis and in vitro evaluation

The present paper discusses the consolidation of apatite wollastonite (AW) glass ceramic/titanium composites with various percentages of Ti (5-40 wt%) in an argon atmosphere, and, evaluation of the sintered properties and bioactivity in simulated body fluid (SBF). The sintered density of the composites was found to increase with an increase in Ti content and was found to be in the range of 2.25 (5 wt% Ti)-2.70 g/cm(3) (40 wt%) as compared with those of sintered AW (2.06 g/cm(3)) and Ti (4.5 g/cm(3)). Biaxial flexural strength of the composites was found to be in the range of 13-45 MPa. X-ray diffraction studies of the sintered AW/Ti composites showed Ti phases (TiPO4+CaTiO3+Ti2O3) and wollastonites (CaSiO3+MgSiO3+CaMgSiO4) as dominating phases. In vitro bioactivity of the composites was studied by soaking the composites in SBF for 7, 14, and 21 days, and the sample surfaces as well as the remaining SBF were analyzed to study the interaction between the material and SBF. The results indicated that the growth of phosphates increased in about 7 days of soaking in SBF, after which a steady state was reached, confirming the samples to be bioactive