Abstract: Carbon particles were used as pore formers to produce porous structures of a SiO2-Na2O- CaO-MgO-Al2O3 glass reinforced hydroxyapatite, and its microstructure and properties were studied. The experimental results show: that porous hydroxyapatite (HA) bioceramics can be obtained with porosity of 30%−48%, and the maximum bending strength of 11.65 MPa. Two separate range distributions of the pores size between 500−600 μm and 1−20 μm were observed. With the sintering temperature increasing, porosity decreases gradually, while bending strength increases. bioglass can improve the mechanical properties of materials, because bioglass will improve densification, thereby reducing porosity. By controlling the content of the carbon can effectively control the porosity, pore size and distribution of pore size. The final microstructure consists of hydroxyapatite, and β-tricalcium phosphate. X-ray diffraction analysis reveals different percentages of phases when porous glass reinforces hydroxyapatite specimens sintering at different temperatures. The biological response of these materials is yet to be tested.

Key words: porous hydroxyapatite; pore formers; carbon; porous ceramic; bioglass