Synthesis and characterization of calcium phosphates designed for technological applications
Synthesis (solid state, room temperature) of calcium phosphates such as apatite Ca5(PO4)3(F, Cl, OH) o tricalcium phosphate Ca3(PO4)3 and their structural characterization through techniques of X-ray diffraction, vibrational spectroscopy such as FTIR and Raman, and electronic microscopy.
Calcium phosphates such as hydroxyapatite Ca5(PO4)3(OH) and tricalcium phosphate Ca3(PO4)3 (TCP) represent synthetic counterparts of materials present in Nature, and they are much appreciated because of their similarities with mineral fraction of vertebrates hard tissues, e.g. bones and teeth. Owing to their crystal-chemical features which give rise to many possible cationic and anionic substitutions, together to their well-known biocompatibility, the study of calcium phosphates lead to the design and production of a large class of biomaterials appreciated in biomedical sciences, as cements used in bone defects reconstruction in orthopedics and dentistry, as nano-carriers in personalized medicine, as phosphor materials for optical imaging, as materials employed in dosimetric applications. Their structural characterization is achieved through a multi-methodological approach based X-ray diffraction, vibrational spectroscopy as Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) e Raman, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Besides, calcium phosphates are occasionally as microcalcifications found in human biological tissues, becoming a diagnostical marker for different pathologies, to be investigated through X-ray scanning microscopies techniques.
– Paterlini V.; El Khouri A.; Bettinelli M.; Trucchi D.M.; Capitelli F. Spectroscopic and Structural Properties of beta-Tricalcium Phosphates Ca9RE(PO4)7 (RE = Nd, Gd, Dy). Crystals 11 (2021) 1269.
– Paterlini V., Bettinelli M., Rizzi R. El Khouri A., Rossi M., Della Ventura G., Capitelli F. Characterization and luminescence of Eu3+- and Gd3+- doped hydroxyapatite Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2. Crystals 10 (2020) 806.
– Baldassarre F., Altomare A., Corriero N., Mesto E., Lacalamita M., Bruno G., Sacchetti A., Dida B., Karaj D., Della Ventura G., Capitelli, F., Siliqi, D. Crystal Chemistry and Luminescence Properties of Eu-Doped Polycrystalline Hydroxyapatite Synthesized by Chemical Precipitation at Room Temperature. Crystals 10 (2020) 250.
– El Khouri A., Elaatmani M., Della Ventura G., Sodo A., Rizzi R., Rossi M., Capitelli F. Synthesis, structure refinement and vibrational spectroscopy of new rare-earth tricalcium phosphates Ca9RE(PO4)7 (RE = La, Pr, Nd, Eu, Gd, Dy, Tm, Yb). Ceramics International 43 (2017) 15645-15653.
