Calcium phosphate glasses: silanation process and effect on the bioactivity behavior of glass-PMMA composites

This article presents the results of a study of the efficiency of silanation process of calcium phosphate glasses particles and its effect on the bioactivity behavior of glass- poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) composites. Two different calcium phosphate glasses: 44.5CaO-44.5P2 O5 -11Na2 O (BV11) and 44.5CaO-44.5P2 O5 -6Na2 O-5TiO2 (G5) were synthesized and treated with silane coupling agent. The glasses obtained were characterized by Microprobe and BET while the efficiency of silanation process was determined using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Thermal Analysis (DTA and TG) techniques. The content of coupling agent chemically tightly bond to the silanated glasses ascended to 1.69 ± 0.02 wt % for BV11sil glass and 0.93 ± 0.01 wt % for G5sil glass. The in vitro bioactivity test carried out in Simulated Body Fluid (SBF) revealed certain bioactive performance with the use of both silanated glasses in a 30% (by weight) as filler of the PMMA composites because of a superficial deposition of an apatite-like layer with low content of CO3 (2-) and HPO4 (2-) in its structure after soaking for 30 days occurred.