A Novel MgO-CaO-SiO 2 System for Fabricating Bone Scaffolds with Improved Overall Performance

摘要

Although forsterite (Mg 2 SiO 4 ) possesses good biocompatibility and suitable mechanical properties, the insufficient bioactivity and degradability hinders its further application. In this study, a novel MgO-CaO-SiO 2 system was developed by adding wollastonite (CaSiO 3 ) into Mg 2 SiO 4 to fabricate bone scaffolds via selective laser sintering (SLS). The apatite-forming ability and degradability of the scaffolds were enhanced because the degradation of CaSiO 3 could form silanol groups, which could offer nucleation sites for apatite. Meanwhile, the mechanical properties of the scaffolds grew with increasing CaSiO 3 to 20 wt %. It was explained that the liquid phase of CaSiO 3 promoted the densification during sintering due to its low melting point. With the further increase in CaSiO 3 , the mechanical properties decreased due to the formation of the continuous filling phase. Furthermore, the scaffolds possessed a well-interconnected porous structure and exhibited an ability to support cell adhesion and proliferation.