A facile synthesis method and fracture toughness evaluation of catfish bones-derived hydroxyapatite

In this study, biological hydroxyapatite (HAp) was synthesized from catfish (Pangasius hypophthalmus) bones. First, the as-received catfish bones were de-proteinized in open air, and then converted to HAp by a solid state heat treatment method at a temperature of 900 °C for a holding time of 2 h in a muffle furnace. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirmed that HAp with high crystallinity of 99.9% was formed matching the structural properties of flouro-apatite with crystallite sizes of approximately 37.1 nm. The morphology of the HAp prepared showed irregularly shaped particles and revealed the appearance of open pores with a less agglomerated structure and a Ca/P ratio of about 1.58. The specific mechanical properties: hardness, compressive strength and fracture toughness of the catfish derived scaffolds were recorded as 480 MPa, 1.92 MPa, and 5.72 Mpa.m1/2, respectively. The fracture toughness of the HAp derived scaffolds suggests that the produced biomaterial is promising for biomedical applications. These findings are useful for the production and application of the HAp powders prepared from catfish bones, and further suggests a possible low-cost route for producing inexpensive ceramics using natural catfish bones.