Adsorption of low-molecular-weight sodium polyacrylate on hydroxyapatite

Adsorption of low-molecular-weight sodium polyacrylate from aqueous solution onto synthetic hydroxyapatite was studied at room temperature so that the mechanism of adhesion of polyacrylate cements to tooth mineral could be elucidated. The adsorption isotherm of sodium polyacrylate was Langmuirian in shape and was thus qualitatively different from that of polyacrylic acid (Misra, 1991), which exhibited an adsorption maximum. The self-association of the molecules that probably causes the maximum to occur with polyacrylic acid was effectively absent for the relatively well-ionized, electrostatically repelling polyacrylate ions of the salt. With the adsorption of acrylate ions, the concentration of phosphate ions increased monotonically, while the concentration of calcium ions showed a minimum. The adsorption of sodium polyacrylate was irreversible, as it was for polyacrylic acid.