The aim of this study was to propose and validate a new unified method for testing dissolution rates of bioactive glasses and their variants, and the formation of calcium phosphate layer formation on their surface, which is an indicator of bioactivity. At present, comparison in the literature is difficult as many groups use different testing protocols. An ISO standard covers the use of simulated body fluid on

Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy has been utilized to characterize the structure of porous silica gel films, both deposited on c-Si substrates and free standing. The films were either dried at room temperature or subjected to partial densification at 400–450 °C. The spectra of the gel films are compared to those of thermal SiO2 grown on c-Si and to Kramers–Kronig analysis of the reflection spectra of bulk SiO2 gels and v-SiO2. The gel films show small frequency shifts compared to the latter spectra and they also exhibit new bands due to the presence of OH groups, although very little molecular water or residual organic species were found. The results are interpreted in terms of the gel structure. Compared to the thermal oxide, the sharp peak near 1070 cm−1 is narrower for the gels and the spread in intertetrahedral angles is estimated at 24° and 27° for room temperature dried and partially densified gels, respectively, compared to 33° for the thermal oxide. This is in agreement with a state of strain in the Si—O—Si bridges of the gels near the surface of the pores. The gel films have also a stronger shoulder near 1200 cm−1, whose intensity decreases with heat treatment of the gel. Its nature is related to the longitudinal optical (LO) component of the high-frequency vibration of SiO2 and it is suggested that the gel pores may account for the activation of the LO component.

No abstract

Neutron diffraction data with high real-space resolution are reported for an extensive series of cesium germanate glasses with 2, 5, 10, 15, 18, 21, 25, and 30 mol % Cs(2)O, and also for pure GeO(2) in its vitreous, quartz, and rutile forms. The results for pure GeO(2) show that neutron diffraction can clearly identify an increase in the Ge-O coordination number above the tetrahedral value of four. The results for cesium germanate glasses give strong evidence that the Ge-O coordination number rises to a maximum of 4.36 +/- 0.03 for 18 mol % Cs(2)O and then declines. This behavior may be associated with the germanate anomaly in the thermophysical properties. A model is developed for the composition-dependence of the Ge-O coordination number, and according to this model the rise in the coordination number involves the formation of mostly GeO(5) units, rather than GeO(6) units. Our results also show that the low alkali anomaly is a longer range phenomenon, and is not associated with a preference for the formation of nonbridging oxygens for very low alkali oxide content.

In vivo Raman spectroscopy, using fiber-optic probes is hindered by the intense background signal, which is generated in the fused-silica fibers, in the fingerprint region of the Raman spectrum (approximately 0-2000 cm(-1)). Optical filtering is necessary to obtain tissue spectra of sufficient quality. The complexity of fiber-optic probes for fingerprint Raman spectroscopy, in combination with size constraints and flexibility requirements for in vivo use have been a major obstacle in the development of in vivo diagnostic tools based on Raman spectroscopy. A setup for remote Raman spectroscopic tissue characterization in the high-wavenumber region ( approximately 2400-3800 cm(-1)) is presented. It makes use of a single, unfiltered, optical fiber for guiding laser light to the sample and for collecting scattered light and guiding it back to a spectrometer. Such a simple configuration is possible because the fused-silica core and cladding of the fiber present almost no Raman background signal at these wavenumbers. Several commercially available optical fibers were tested with respect to Raman signal background, to determine their suitability for in vivo Raman spectroscopy measurements in the high-wavenumber region. Different fiber core, cladding, and coating materials were tested. Silica core-silica clad fibers, with an acrylate coating and a black nylon jacket, proved to be one of the best candidates. In vitro measurements on brain tissue of a 6-month-old pig were obtained with a remote high-wavenumber Raman setup. They illustrate the low background signal generated in the setup and the signal quality obtained with a collection time of 1 s.