Formation of bone-like apatite on organic polymers treated with a silane-coupling agent and a titania solution

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) and Nylon 6 in plate form were treated with silane-coupling agents, a titanium alkoxide-alcohol solution and a hot HCl solution to form a thin crystalline titanium oxide layer. When placed in a simulated body fluid with ion concentrations nearly equal to those of the human blood plasma, nanosized bone-like apatite formed uniformly on the surfaces of these treated polymers: within 2 days for PET and Nylon 6, and 7 days for EVOH. This indicates that such titania-modified polymers might form bone-like apatite in the living body, and bond to living bone through this apatite layer. Three-dimensional fabrics of these polymer fibers, with open spaces in various sizes, are expected to be useful as bone substitutes, as they will be integrated with the natural bone.