Synthesis, characterization and bioactivity of a calcium-phosphate glass-ceramics obtained by the sol-gel processing method.

In this work, a calcium-phosphate glass-ceramics was successfully obtained by heat treatment of a mixture of 26.52 in wt.% of fluorapatite (Fap) and 73.48 in wt.% of 77S (77 SiO14 CaO9 PO in wt.%) gel. The calcium phosphate-glass-ceramics was prepared by sol-gel process with tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), triethyl phosphate (TEP), calcium nitrate and fluorapatite. The synthesized powders were characterized by some commonly used tools such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), P magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS-NMR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and thin-film X-ray diffraction (TF-XRD). The obtained results seemed to confirm the nucleation and growth of hydroxyapatite (Hap) nano-phase in the glass. Moreover, an in-vitro evaluation of the glass-ceramic was performed. In addition, to assess its bioactive capacity, it was soaked in simulated body fluid (SBF) at different time intervals. The SEM, EDS and TF-XRD analyses showed the deposition of hydroxyapatite on the surface of the specimens after three days of immersion in SBF solution. The mechanical properties of the obtained material such as rupture strength, Vickers hardness and elastic modulus were measured. In addition, the friction coefficient of calcium phosphate-glass-ceramics was tested. The values of the composite of rupture strength (24MPa), Vickers hardness (214Hv), Young's modulus (52.3GPa), shear modulus (19GPa) and friction coefficient (0.327) were obtained. This glass-ceramics can have useful applications in dental prostheses. Indeed, this material may have promising applications for implants because of its content of fluorine, the effective protector against dental caries.