Three-dimensional fully interconnected highly porous hydroxyapatite scaffolds derived from particle-stabilized emulsions

Three-dimensional (3D) macroporous hydroxyapatite (HAp) ceramics were fabricated via a facile emulsion templating technique for bone tissue engineering applications. The prepared scaffolds have an open, uniform, and 3D fully interconnected pore structure with high porosities, mechanical strength, and a large surface/volume ratio. The porous structure, which is composed of an array of quasi-spherical large cells interconnected through windows, has a pore diameter in the range of 5-30 mu m. The samples sintered at the optimal temperature (1200 degrees C) have an open porosity of similar to 76.5% and a high compressive strength of 4.26 MPa. The technique discussed here is a significant advancement over other previously used methods to produce HAp ceramics and is expected to enable much improvement in the topology of the porous structure of scaffolds. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.