SYNTHESIS OF NEW CHITOSAN-CARBONATE HYDROXYAPATITE COMPOSITES WITH POTENTIAL APPLICATION IN BONE TISSUE ENGINEERING – PHYSICOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS

The subject of this study was the synthesis of 12 chitosan-hydroxyapatite (CH:HA) composites with different contents of carbonate ions (CO3 2-), in two weight ratios of CH to HA (30:70 and 50:50), and two viscosities of CH (low [L] and high [H]). The method of direct co-precipitation of the introduced reagents was used. The structure of the obtained materials was characterised by Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. The FT-IR spectra revealed the bands and ranges of the characteristic bands for CH and HA. The presence of CO3 2- introduced into the structure of the obtained composites was identified by infrared spectroscopy. A reduction in the size of HA unit cells was observed in the obtained CH:HA biocomposites, in materials with a higher content of incorporated CO3 2-. The obtained nanomaterials are similar to natural bone tissue. Future research will focus on the evaluation of the obtained materials as a drug delivery system.