Effects Of NaCl Porogen On The Structure And Properties Of Silk Fibroin/Hydroxyapatite Porous Composites

The porous SF/HA composites were prepared with SF/HA powder and SF powder through mould pressing and then isostatic pressing using NaCl as porogen, the effects of the addition, particle size distribution, average particle size of NaCl on the structure and properties of the porous SF/HA composites were investigated.Firstly, the effects of the addition of NaCl on the structure and properties of porous SF/HA composites were investigated. The results showed that with the increasing of the addition of NaCl, the porosity, average pore size, pore size of the largest frequency of occurrence, dispersion of pore size distribution of the composite increased, while the flexural and compressive modulus, strength and fracture energy of the composite declined. When the addition of NaCl reached 400 ~ 550%, the rate of these changes slowed down. These results showed that when the addition of NaCl reached 400 ~ 550%, the pore connectivity of the material improved significantly.Secondly, the effects of the particle size distribution and average particle size of NaCl on the structure and properties of the porous SF/HA composites were investigated. The results showed that the greater the scope of NaCl particle size distribution, the larger the dispersion of pore size distribution. With the increasing of the addition of NaCl, the average pore size, dispersion of pore size distribution, pore connectivity of the material increased.These results of the study showed that the porosity, pore size and pore connectivity of the composite could be controlled by the adjusting of the addition, particle size distribution and particle size of NaCl.