Phosphate bonding cements and their applications

摘要

Phosphate bonding is the basis of many refractories and cements. The literature on the topic has been the subject of two previous reviews. Kingery summarised the literature up to 1950 and Cassidy reviewed the progress up to 1977. This paper deals with the major developments in the applications of phosphate bonding in the last two decades, with special emphasis on cold setting cements. A brief summary of the content of the previous reviews is also presented by way of introduction. Two main areas of development are considered in this review. The first of these is the development of magnesia phosphate cements for applications in the rapid repair of concrete. These cements are well suited for this purpose because they set and gain strength quickly and bond well with Portland cement composites. However, these properties have also seen these cements used in a variety of other functions. The second area is the use of phosphate bonding cements in biomedical applications. Zinc phosphates have long been common as dental cements, but recently, calcium phosphates have been the focus of research, not just as dental cements but also as bone cements in procedures such as hip replacements. They have also been touted as possible slow release delivery systems for antibiotics.