Manufacture of nanoparticles from bone: a preliminary study

This study investigated a mechanical processing method using vibratory milling to reduce the particle size of bone ash to produce hydroxyapatite (HA) nanoparticles from bovine bone. Bovine femurs were cleaned of soft tissue, cut into small pieces, heated to 600 deg for 24 h, and ground into a coarse powder. A 50 wt% suspension was prepared, vibratory milled for 18 h, and then the milled suspension was filter pressed, dried, and ground into powder. The powder was analyzed with scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, which confirmed the particle size and the chemical composition of the powder-matched HA. The results of this study qualitatively showed that it is possible to produce HA nanoparticles from bone. This research explores a "green" manufacturing process that reuses a scrap material from the food industry and reduces the use of chemical precursors for synthetic nanoparticle synthesis. Such HA powder can potentially be used as a bone substitute and for coating orthopedic and dental implants.