Fabrication and characterization of porous hydroxyapatite granules.

Porous hydroxyapatite granules with controlled porosity, pore size, pore size distribution, and granule size were fabricated using a drip-casting process. Granules with a wide range of porosity from 24 to 76 vol%, pore sizes from approximately 95 to approximately 400 microns, and granular sizes from 0.7 mm to approximately 4 mm can be obtained. This technique allows the fabrication of porous granules with desirable porous characters simulating natural bone architecture, and is expected to provide advantages for biomedical purposes.