An overview of the effects of thermal processing on bioactive glasses

TLDR

45S5 Bioglass is widely used for bone bonding, but its powders’ sintering ability is crucial for device fabrication and the glass tends to crystallize during sintering, potentially reducing bioactivity. The study aims to review the structural transformations during heat treatment of Bioglass, focusing on sintering, crystallization, and their impact on bioactivity, and to discuss alternative formulations. The authors review the heat‑treatment transformations of Bioglass, focusing on sintering and crystallization, and assess the resulting glass‑ceramics’ bioactivity. Questions about Bioglass and its sintering ability.

Abstract

Bioglass? 45S5 is widely used in biomedical applications due to its ability to bond to bone and even to soft tissues. The sintering ability of Bioglass? powders is a key factor from a technological point of view, since its govern the production of advanced devices, ranging from highly porous scaffolds to functionalized coatings. Unfortunately this particular glass composition is prone to crystallize at the temperature required for sintering and this may impair the bioactivity of the original glass. For these reasons, a prerequisite to tailor the fabrication of Bioglass?-derived implants is to understand the interaction between sintering, crystallization and bioactivity. In this work the structural transformations which occur during the heat treatment of Bioglass? are reviewed and a special attention is paid to the sintering and crystallization processes. Moreover the bioactivity of the final glass-ceramics is discussed and some alternative glass formulations are reported.