Continuous, High Strenght Hydroxyapatite Fiber

We will develop a laboratory scale process to fabricate a high strength, continuous hydroxyapa-tite fiber. A hydroxyapatite fiber would find many uses in bone replacement applications; especially bonereplacements requiring high strength and toughness in a completely biocompatible material. Fabrics ofwoven hydroxyapatite fiber could be used as scaffolds for bone ingrowth. Composites reinforced withthe hydroxyapatite fiber could replace bone in highly loaded areas and would also be useful inreplacement of thin sections where a high degree of toughness would be required. Existing fiberhandling and textile technologies would be useful to form the hydroxyapatite fiber into shapes simulatingthe replaced bone. Mechanical properties of hydroxyapatite implants would be tailored to mimick theanisotropic properties of bone so that input stresses to living host bone would be as natural as possible.It is anticipated that any wear products of hydroxyapatite composites would not cause adverse tissuereactions as is sometimes the case with biomaterials currently in use. The laboratory process to makethe fiber is based on the sol-gel technique which has been successful in making several commerciallyviable products in recent years. Small scale trials will be performed and the composition and tensilestrength of the fiber will be measured. With these results a continuous process will be designed and itsfeasibility tested. These Phase I results will form the basis for full process development in Phase II.