PREPARATION OF PURE HYDROXYAPATITE SINGLE-CRYSTALS BY HYDROTHERMAL RECRYSTALLIZATION

In this paper the preparation of very pure hydroxyapatite single crystals will be described. The preparation procedure consists of three different stages: wet chemical preparation, a Soxhlet extraction at 100°C and a hydrothermal recrystallization at 2 kbar in the temperature range 430-500°C. The apatite composition and properties after each stage were determined by chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction, IR analysis and scanning electron microscopy. The results indicate that with this procedure very pure stoïchiometric single crystals with a length of up to about 3.5 mm can be produced. © 1979.