BIPHASIC CALCIUM PHOSPHATE SCAFFOLDS DERIVED FROM HYDROTHERMALLY SYNTHESIZED POWDERS

Biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) scaffolds were successfully produced by robocasting. The BCP powder was prepared by hydrothermal synthesis (150°C for 4 h) and calcined at 1000°C. The as-obtained powder was milled to obtain A suitable particle size distribution (PSD) for optimizing the rheological properties of the suspensions and pastes prepared thereof. Scaffolds with different pore dimensions (300x300, 500x500, 250x500 and 300x600 μm) were prepared by extruding the pastes through 410 μm diameter nozzles. The green scaffolds were dried and posteriorly sintered at 1100°C. The compressive strength of the sintered scaffolds was well within the range of the mechanical properties reported from cancellous bone, being intrinsically related with the particle size distribution. Moreover, the obtained scaffolds demonstrated to have good biomineralization ability. The obtained scaffolds by robocasting revealed to possess promising features for their applications in bone regeneration and tissue engineering