Sintered hydroxyfluorapatites. Part II: mechanical properties of solid solutions determined by microindentation

Fluoride substitution within hydroxyapatite is an important occurrence for biological apatites and is a promising approach for the chemical modification of synthetic hydroxyapatite. Limited information on the influence of fluoride substitution for hydroxyl groups on the mechanical properties has provided the rationale for this study. Hydroxyfluorapatites with 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% replacement of hydroxyl groups with fluoride ions were assessed for hardness, elastic modulus, fracture toughness and brittleness using microindentation of sintered pellets. The production of samples with a similar grain size and density allowed the influence of fluoride on mechanical properties to be determined. It was found that the hardness remains unaffected until 80% replacement of hydroxyl groups with fluoride, after which the hardness rapidly increases. The elastic modulus increases linearly with fluoride content. Fracture toughness is improved with fluoride incorporation into the lattice and reaches a peak of 1.8 for a 95% dense sintered pellet with a 60% fluoride replacement, followed by a rapid decrease at higher fluoride concentrations. The brittleness index is lowered to a minimum at 60%, after which a rapid increase occurs. High fluoride levels are unfavourable from a mechanical perspective, are not recommended for biomaterials, and can lead to a higher incidence of fracture where sodium fluoride, for treatment of osteoporosis, may produce a highly fluoridated hydroxyapatite.