Examination of novel electrosprayed biogenic hydroxyapatite coatings on Si3N4 and Si3N4 /MWCNT ceramic composite

Abstract

Novel hydroxyapatite coatings on Si3N4 and Si3N4/MWCNT ceramic substrates were deposited by electrospraying method for the first time. The aim of this study was to produce thin nano-hydroxyapatite (nHA) layer on silicon nitride (Si3N4) implant material with a cost-efficient electrospray deposition method. During the first experiments, continuous nHA layer could not form due to the high electrical resistance of the Si3N4 substrate. Therefore, the electrical conductivity of the Si3N4 substrate has been increased by the help of multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) addition. As a result, ∼5 µm thick continuous and smooth nHA coating could have been realized successfully on the Si3N4/MWCNT composite.

Keywords

• bioceramics
• silicon nitride
• hydroxyapatite
• grain size
• electrospraying