Sintering and robocasting of beta-tricalcium phosphate scaffolds for orthopaedic applications.

beta-Tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP) scaffolds with designed, three-dimensional (3-D) geometry and mesoscale porosity have been fabricated by direct-write assembly (robocasting) techniques. Concentrated beta-TCP inks with suitable viscoelastic properties were developed to enable the fabrication of the complex 3-D structures. A comprehensive study of the sintering behavior of TCP as a function of the calcium content in the starting powder was also carried out, and the optimal heat treatment for fabricating scaffolds with dense beta-TCP rods has been determined. Such analysis provides clues to controlling the microstructure of the fabricated structures and, therefore, enabling the fabrication by robocasting of TCP scaffolds with tailored performance for bone tissue engineering applications.

[1]  P. Boch,et al.  Preparation of α- and β-tricalcium phosphate ceramics, with and without magnesium addition , 1994 .

[2]  Xing‐dong Zhang,et al.  An Improvement in Sintering Property of β-Tricalcium Phosphate by Addition of Calcium Pyrophosphate and Calcium Carbonate , 2005 .

[3]  Duc Truong Pham,et al.  Rapid Manufacturing: The Technologies and Applications of Rapid Prototyping and Rapid Tooling , 2001 .

[4]  D. Hutmacher,et al.  Scaffolds in tissue engineering bone and cartilage. , 2000, Biomaterials.

[5]  S. Hollister.  Porous scaffold design for tissue engineering , 2005, Nature materials.

[6]  J. Cesarano,et al.  Processing of Highly Concentrated Aqueous α‐Alumina Suspensions Stabilized with Polyelectrolytes , 1988 .

[7]  E. D. Rekow,et al.  CAD/CAM for dental restorations-some of the curious challenges , 1991, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering.

[8]  Brent Constantz,et al.  Hydroxyapatite and Related Materials , 1994 .

[9]  John N. Stuecker,et al.  Control of the viscous behavior of highly concentrated mullite suspensions for robocasting , 2003 .

[10]  Larry L. Hench,et al.  Bioceramics: From Concept to Clinic , 1991 .

[11]  E. Sachlos,et al.  Making tissue engineering scaffolds work. Review: the application of solid freeform fabrication technology to the production of tissue engineering scaffolds. , 2003, European cells & materials.

[12]  C M Langton,et al.  Development of a cancellous bone structural model by stereolithography for ultrasound characterisation of the calcaneus. , 1997, Medical engineering & physics.

[13]  J. Cesarano,et al.  ROBOCASTING PROVIDES MOLDLESS FABRICATION FROM SLURRY DEPOSITION , 1998 .

[14]  Seeram Ramakrishna,et al.  Development of nanocomposites for bone grafting , 2005 .

[15]  J. Vacanti,et al.  Tissue engineering : Frontiers in biotechnology , 1993 .

[16]  C. Klein,et al.  STABILITY OF CALCIUM PHOSPHATE CERAMICS AND PLASMA SPRAYED COATINGS , 1993 .

[17]  Eduardo Saiz,et al.  Freezing as a Path to Build Complex Composites , 2006, Science.

[18]  M. Sefton,et al.  Tissue engineering. , 1998, Journal of cutaneous medicine and surgery.

[19]  Joseph Cesarano,et al.  Colloidal inks for directed assembly of 3-D periodic structures , 2002 .

[20]  M. J. Edirisinghe,et al.  Solid freeform fabrication of ceramics , 2003 .

[21]  J. Lewis,et al.  Concentrated hydroxyapatite inks for direct-write assembly of 3-D periodic scaffolds. , 2005, Biomaterials.

[22]  H. Aoki,et al.  Dense polycrystalline β-tricalcium phosphate for prosthetic applications , 1982 .

[23]  A. Kishioka,et al.  Sinterability of β‐Calcium Orthophosphate Powder Prepared by Spray‐Pyrolysis , 1994 .

[24]  Scott J Hollister,et al.  Mechanical and in vivo performance of hydroxyapatite implants with controlled architectures. , 2002, Biomaterials.

[25]  F. Lange.  Colloidal processing of powder for reliable ceramics , 1998 .

[26]  Duc Truong Pham,et al.  Rapid Prototyping Processes , 2001 .

[27]  Howard F. McMurdie,et al.  Phase diagrams for ceramists , 1964 .