Preparation and characterization of porous apatite-wollastonite/β-tricalcium phosphate composite scaffolds

Porous apatite-wollastonite/ beta-tricalcium phosphate composite scaffolds (AW/beta-TCP) were prepared from apatite-wollastonite (AW) glass-ceramic powders and beta-tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP) bioceramic powders, using stearic acid as porogen. The mixture powders were allowing compression molding and firing at 1170 degrees C to obtain porous composite scaffolds. Characteristics of the scaffolds were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scan electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectrum (EDS), inductively couple plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) and so on. Rat mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs) were co-cultured with AW/beta-TCP in vitro to evaluate the biocompatibility of the composite. Results show that: AW/beta-TCP composite scaffolds with 30wt% of stearic acid reach the compressive strength of 14.3MPa, with the porosity as high as 66.9% and pore diameter ranging from 100 to 700 mu m. In vitro experiments reveal that AW/beta TCP scaffolds are biocompatible, bioactive and biodegradable. The porous AW/beta-TCP composite is expected to be a candidate scaffold for bone tissue engineering.