Modification of hydroxyapatite by doping lithium through acid-base reaction

Abstract

Lithium (Li) doping is increasingly regarded as an effective modification for hydroxyapatite (HA) due to its excellent performances in osteogenesis. However, traditional method involving calcium, lithium and phosphorus salt (salt route) usually brought some unexpected ions, which could influence the properties of the obtained materials largely. In the present study, acid-base reaction (acid-base route) was applied in a chemical coprecipitation method to achieve Li-doped HA in nano size (nLiHA) at various calcium to lithium ratios. Comparisons on structure and chemical composition between the nLiHA materials made from both routes (acidbase route and salt route) were subsequently conducted. As a result, synthesizing nLiHA through acid-base reaction was proved to be a feasible improvement on product purity and crystallinity.