Comparative Study of the Degradation Behavior of Mechanically Mixed and Chemically Precipitated Biphasic Calcium Phosphates

Surface morphology and degradation behavior of mechanically mixed and chemically precipitated biphasic calcium phosphate (M-BCP and P-BCP) were compared. For the M-BCP powder, commercial HA and TCP powders were used. In order to prepare P-BCP powder, precipitation method was used. The particle size of P-BCP was smaller than that of M-BCP. The disk-type specimens of each powder were prepared for the morphology comparison and degradation test. The surface morphology of sintered samples was porous in M-BCP and dense in P-BCP. The degradation test was conducted in the revised simulated body fluid (R-SBF) for 1, 7, and 21 days. Surface morphology and degradation rate of two samples were different. The weight gain in both samples increased linearly with immersion period due to apatite-like layer formation. However, the weight gain in M-BCP was much higher than that in P-BCP. The weight gain was related to the surface morphology and degradation with immersion period.