Formation of interconnected macropores in apatitic calcium phosphate bone cement with the use of an effervescent additive.

Calcium phosphate cements (CPCs) can be considered as good candidate for bone tissue engineering because they can be resorbed and take part in the bone remodeling process. Several efforts have been made into improve the resorption rate of the calcium phosphate cement by introducing macropores to the cement matrix. In this investigation a simple and effective method has been presented based on the addition of various amounts of an effervescent agent to the calcium phosphate cement components. The effervescent agent was a mixture of sodium hydrogen carbonate, NaHCO(3) (that was added to the powder phase), and citric acid monohydrate, C(6)H(8)O(7).H(2)O (that was dissolved in the liquid phase). The obtained macroporous samples were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy techniques at 4 h after setting and 3 days after soaking in a special simulated body fluid solution named Hank's balanced salt solution. Mercury intrusion porosimetry was also employed for characterizing the pore volume and pore size distribution in the cement structure. Results showed that the rate of conversion of staring reactant to the apatite phase and the apatite chemistry were significantly changed by using the additive in the cement components. Also both the pore volume and pore size were changed by varying both the amount of effervescent additive and the powder to liquid ratio.