Hydroxyapatite nanospindles by biomimetic synthesis with chitosan as template

Abstract Based on the principles of biomineralisation, spindle shaped hydroxyapatites (HA) were synthesised through the biomimetic method with chitosan (CS) as template. The microstructure, chemical composition and thermal behaviour were characterised by means of X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and thermogravimetry differential thermal analysis (TGDTA) respectively. The results show that the spindle shaped nanoHA, 30–40 nm in length and 7–8 nm in width, were synthesised with 0·5 wt-%CS as template in 6% (v/v) hydrogen peroxide solution for 7 days. The crystallinity of samples increased with the aging time. TGDTA analyses show that the HA powders synthesised with CS as template contain CS molecules and have good thermal stability up to 800°C.