Novel Preparation Method of Hydroxyapatite Fibers

Abstract

A novel method for preparing calcium hydroxyapatite (Ca 10 (PO 4 ) 6 (OH) 2 : HAp) fibers has been developed. HAp fibers can be prepared successfully by heating a compact consisting of calcium metaphosphate (ß‐Ca(PO 3 ) 2 ) fibers with Ca(OH) 2 particles in air at 1000°C and subsequently treating the resultant compact with dilute aqueous HCl solution. The ß‐Ca(PO 3 ) 2 fibers and the Ca(OH) 2 in the compact were converted into fibrous HAp and CaO phases by the heating, and the CaO phase was removed by acid‐leaching. HAp fibers obtained in the present work were 40‐150 µm in length and 2‐10 µm in diameter. The fibers had almost the same dimensions as those of the ß‐Ca(PO 3 ) 2 fibers.