Development and characterization of porous silver-incorporated hydroxyapatite ceramic for separation and elimination of microorganisms.

A novel filter material for separating and eliminating microorganisms in water and gas was fabricated by incorporating silver ions into porous hydroxyapatite (HA) ceramics prepared by a starch additive technique. The porous ceramics reveal a microstructure of both large and small pores. Microorganism separating and eliminating properties of the porous silver-incorporated HA ceramics (PHA-Ag) were investigated by bacterial and viral filtration tests. The PHA-Ag demonstrated excellent separating and antibacterial effects on Escherichia coli and the mechanisms were studied. Adsorption of bacterial cells to the HA and the barricading effect of small pores contribute to the separating property of PHA-Ag, while the Ag+ ions equip the ceramics with antibacterial property. Furthermore, the PHA-Ag exhibited an observable virus-eliminating property and its probable mechanism was also discussed. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.