Accepted Manuscript

Construction novel hydroxyapatite-nitinol nanocomposite for hard tissue applications

Samaneh Kamali, Sepideh Shemshad, Alireza Khavandi, Shahram Azari

PII: S0254-0584(18)30742-9
DOI: 10.1016/j.matchemphys.2018.08.077
Reference: MAC 20920

To appear in: Materials Chemistry and Physics

Received Date: 3 April 2018

Revised Date: 22 July 2018
Accepted Date: 24 August 2018

Please cite this article as: S. Kamali, S. Shemshad, A. Khavandi, S. Azari, Construction novel
hydroxyapatite-nitinol nanocomposite for hard tissue applications, Materials Chemistry and Physics
(2018), doi: 10.1016/j.matchemphys.2018.08.077.

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Construction Novel Hydroxyapatite-Nitinol nanocomposite for hard tissue

applications
Samaneh Kamali*a, Sepideh Shemshad b,Alireza Khavandi c, Shahram Azarid
a Masters student, department of Material Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran, Email:
kamalisamaneh70@gmail.com. Phone numbers: 989136666335

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b Masters student, department of Material Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran

c Professor, department of Material Engineering, IRAN University of science and Technology, Tehran, Iran.

d National Cell Bank of Iran, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.

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Abstract

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Natural Hydroxyapatite (HA)- Nitinol (NiTi) nanocomposites with different
percentage of NiTi were fabricated by powder metallurgy. The structural stability

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of HA phase in HA- NiTi samples and mechanical strength of nanocomposites
were studied by FTIR, XRD and compression test. In addition, biological behavior
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of the composites were investigated by in vitro studies. The existence of NiTi
metal phase can promote dehydration and decomposition of HA ceramic phase into
more stable calcium phosphate phases at high temperatures. According to results
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that obtained, the nanocomposite sample with 10wt.% NiTi has the maximum
compressive strength (67.67 MPa) compare to pure HA ceramic (46 MPa) that
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manufactured under the same condition. Crack deflection is the chief strength
mechanism in the nanocomposites. in vitro studies showed that MG-67 osteoblast
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cells attached and spread on the surface of the sample. The results revealed that
nanocomposite with 10wt.% NiTi has a good mechanical strength and suitable
biological behavior that can be used in medical applications.
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Keywords
Hydroxyapatite, Nitinol, ceramic, nanocomposite
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1. Introduction
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Hydroxyapatite (HA, Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2) is a unique ceramic material with

chemical composition and crystallographic structure similar to the mineral phase of
the bone[1]–[3]. It has excellent properties such as bioactivity, biocompatibility
and the ability to form a strength bone- bond with other tissues through an
osteoconductive mechanism[4]–[6]. Therefore, in terms of biocompatibility,
hydroxyapatite seems an appropriate ceramic for hard tissue replacement[7]. But,
its brittleness and low mechanical strength in tension, prevent its clinical use as
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long term load- bearing applications[1], [2], [8]. There are several methods to
improving the mechanical properties of HA. Such as, fabricate HA ceramic
composites or decreasing the grain size (in the range of nano)[7], [9], [10]. Thus,
making HA nanocomposite can achieve the new materials with Proper mechanical
properties For bone replacement applications[11].

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In recent years, many reinforcements, including 316L stainless steel[5],
Zirconia[12], bioactive glass[13], alumina[14] and titanium[7] have been used in
HA ceramic to improve its mechanical reliability. Among them, metal

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reinforcements with an energy-absorbing mechanism by the plastic deformation at
the tips of cracks, it seems more appropriate[7], [15].

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Nitinol is a nickel-titanium alloy with near equiatomic composition[16]. It is
well known for its unique physical and mechanical properties, such as unique
shape memory effect[17], as well as superelastic properties, low elastic modulus,

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high strength, corrosion resistance in seawater and excellent biocompatibility[17]–
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[21]. Due to these properties and similarity superelastic biomechanical properties
with some human hard tissues such as bones and tendons, its promising for
orthopedic implant applications and hard-tissue replacements[19], [22], [23].
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The present study aimed to improve the mechanical properties of natural HA

by addition of NiTi with different weight percentage of NiTi( 5,10 and 15).
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samples fabricated by cold press and sintering method. The structural stability of
HA phase in HA-NiTi composite by means of FTIR and XRD considered. Finally,
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the mechanical properties and biological behaviors composite were investigated by

mechanical and invitro studies.
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2. Materials and methods

2.1. Material preparation
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In this study, HA was produced from bovine femoral bones. Head parts of
the bones were cut and shafts of the bones were boiled in water to remove bone
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marrow. The remaining soft tissues on the surface of bones have been scraped off
by using a knife. bones were cut into several pieces in order to obtain larger
surface area that will be advantageous in subsequent calcination process. The
cleaned bone pieces were calcined at 850 °C for 2 hours to obtain purely inorganic
phase (mainly HA) by removing organic phase of the bone. An agate mortar and
pestle have been used for HA powder production from calcinated bone parts. Then,
the produced HA powders were ball milled in zirconia bowl and yttria-stabilized
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zirconia (YSZ) balls at 300 rpm running speed for 6 hours by using a laboratory
planetary ball mill to obtain Nanoparticles HA powder(ethanol (C2H6O) was
utilized as Process-Control Agent (PCA), the ball-to-powder weight ratio (BPR)
was 10:1).
Nitinol powder used in this study was produced by mechanical alloying. For

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this purpose, The powders of Ti (99.5%) and Ni (99.5 %) were mixed with molar
ratio of 1:1. Ni powder with a mean particle size of about 10 and Ti powder
with a mean particle size of about 10 . The elemental powders were

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mechanically alloyed in a planetary ball mill under an argon atmosphere. The
argon used was high purity grade to prevent TiO2 formation during MA

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(mechanically alloyed). The experiments were carried out in a hardened steel
container with steel balls at room temperature. The ball-to-powder weight ratio and
the rotational speed were 10:1 and 200 rpm, respectively. The maximum milling

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time was 40 h and, to avoid temperature increase during MA, 30 min periods of
milling were alternated with 10 min periods of rest(ethanol (C2H6O) was utilized as
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Process-Control Agent (PCA)).
2.2. Production composite
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The mixed powder of HA and NiTi with different percentages of NiTi( 5, 10

and 15 wt.%) were first blended by ball milling and then compacted at 300 MPa to
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produced green samples with a ratio of diameter to height 1 to 2. Finally, produced

samples sintered via two step sintering process as shown in Fig.1 ( heating and
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cooling rate 10 ᵒC/min). The samples produced nomination H(pure HA), HN5(HA-
5%NiTi), HN10(HA-10%NiTi) and HN15(HA-15%NiTi).
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1400

1200 t1= 30 min, T1= 1150 ᵒC

1000
Temperature (ᵒC)

800
t2= 6 hr, T2= 950 ᵒC

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400

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200

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0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
Time (min)

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Figure. 1. Two step sintering process to compact the nanocomposite samples.
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2.3. XRD analysis
To investigate the phase composition of extracted HA powder and HA-NiTi
composite, X ray diffraction (XRD: PW3830) analysis was carried out. This
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system works with CuK2 incident radiation (1.5405 Aᵒ). The XRD peaks are
recorded in 2 theta range of 0-90ᵒ).
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2.4. FTIR analysis

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To identify the existence of organic species and also the degree of probable
dehydroxylation of HA, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR: S 8400) analysis was
performed. The measurements were carried out with wave numbers from 400-4000
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cm-1 with a resolution of 4 cm-1.

2.5. SEM and EDS analysis
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To study the surface morphology and microstructure of the sample, and cell
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adhesiveness Scanning Electron Microscopy (TESCANVEGA//XXMU ) was

used. All the samples are coated with thin film of gold (Au) to reduce charging of
the sample. Finally, a scanning electron microscope equipped with energy
dispersive spectroscopy (EDS).
2.6. Mechanical testing
Mechanical characteristics of the samples was evaluated with compressive
test according to ASTM C 1424-04. The compressive tests were performed on
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cylindrical samples (5 mm in diameter and 10mmin length) with using a universal

testing machine (Zwick/Roell Z100). The crosshead speed was 0.5 mm/min.
2.7. MTT assay
MTT (3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide)
colorimetric assay was used to investigate cell viability 7 and 14 days after

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seeding. For this purpose, the first 1×104 cells in 96 wells cell culture plate was
poured. Then for 24 hours were at incubator 37ᵒC to the cells stick to the bottom

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plate. Extract taken from each sample was added to the wells and the cells cultured
for 24 hours in the presence of the extract. Then medium was removed from the
samples and 100 microliters of MTT at a concentration of 0.5 mg/ml was spilled to

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each well. After 4 hours, solution on the cells was removed and isopropanol
solution was added to the purple crystals created to be solved. Then concentration
material dissolved in isopropyl alcohol of in wavelength 545 nm was calculated.

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Well, have more cells, optical density (OD) higher than in wells with lower cell
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shows.
2.8. Alkaline phosphatase activity
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Osteogenic differentiation on various samples was characterized by the

activity of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) after 7 and 14 days. For this purpose, cells
were seeded on the samples and control disc in 6 well plates at a density of
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~50×103/well. Than samples were placed in an incubator and at certain times some
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medium was added to each well. Finally, after 7 and 14 days from culture, the
sample medium was removed and evaluated to determining the ALP.
2.9. Cell adhesion
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In order to investigate the cell adhesion on the HA-NiTi composites, MG63

cell lines were cultured on the samples containing culture medium supplemented
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with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS). The fabricated specimens were placed into a
24-well plate, which was followed by plating 3*104 cells/ cm2 on to those. The
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cells were cultured for 4-5 h in a humidified incubator under an atmosphere of 5%

CO2 at 37 C. the culture medium was removed and the samples for 30 seconds
with PBS (phosphate buffered saline) was washed. For the SEM observations, the
cultured cells were fixed with 3.5% glutaraldehyde and then dehydrated with
graded ethanol (50%, 60%, 70%, 80% and 96%).
3. Results and discussion
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Fig .2 shows XRD patterns for NiTi powder after 40h mechanical alloying.
The presence of the intermetallic phases NiTi is confirmed by comparing the 2
position peaks with the standard JCPDS 0351281(Martensitic Nitinol) and
0650917( Nitinol austenitic). The XRD spectrum of NiTi demonstrated peaks at
34.88° and 43.91° that are important for NiTi.

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500 NiTi (B2)
NiTi (B19')
450
400

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intensity(a. u.)

350
300
250

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200
150
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100
50
0
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10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

2 Theta (degree)
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Figure. 2. X-ray diffraction patterns of Ni50Ti50 powder at 40h mechanical

alloying.
Fig. 3 shows XRD spectra of raw HA powder extracted from bovine cortical
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bone. By comparing the pattern with the standard JCPDS 090432[4], The peaks of
the synthesized nHA particles showed peaks at 26.172°, 28.25°, 29.1°, 31.9°,
32.35°, 33°, 34.2°, 39.96°, 46.85°, 48.25°, 50.65°, 51.4°, 52.35°, 63.1° and 53.38°
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which are specific to HA. this indicated that the powder produced is
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hydroxyapatite.
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1400
1200
intensity(a. u.)

1000
800
600
400

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200
0
10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90
2 Theta (degree)

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Figure. 3. XRD pattern of Bone ash powder.
Accomplished FTIR analysis to confirm the results obtained from the XRD

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analysis of hydroxyapatite powder. The chemical groups in the FTIR spectrum of
synthesized HA are PO43-,OH-, as well as CO32- that are characteristic of HA. The

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FTIR spectrum of raw HA powders shown in fig. 4 exhibit most bonds that have
been reported by Gheisari[24] and Heidari[25]. The vibration peak of OH- group is
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relatively wide, from 2800 to 3600 cm-1, with a sharp peak at 3569 cm-1; also a
weaker peak of OH- is formed at 630 cm-1. A small quantity of CO32- groups at
1400 cm-1 could be found in raw natural HA powders. It is reported that the
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carbonate ions increases the sinterability of hydroxyapatite if they replace

phosphate groups in HA lattice[7]. The bands located at 570, 603, 1045 and 1089
cm-1 originate by PO43- Ions, which represent natural HA (NHA).
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100

90

80
2360.71
2337.56
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2856.38

1988.4
2921.9

981.70-
3382.91
3421.48

70
Transimittance(arbitrary units)

3569.99

60
630.68
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50

40
603.6
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570.8

30

20
1089.71

10
1045.

0
3900 3400 2900 2400 1900 1400 900 400
Wavenumber(cm^-1)

Figure. 4. FTIR spectrum of produced hydroxyapatite powder.

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The SEM images of HA powder are shown in Fig. 5(a). In order to check the grain
size with more precision, MIP software was used. According to the results; the
majority of grains length and width are below 370 nm and HA exhibits spherical
morphology. The Nitinol grain size and surface morphology of the particles after

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mechanical alloying are shown in Fig. 5(b) As can be seen, the particle size is
below 500nm. Due to the difficulty for the nanoparticles to be dispersed

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homogeneously due to their extremely high surface areas. There might be errors in
the calculation because of a high tendency of nano particles to agglomerate.

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b
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Figure. 5. SEM images of (a) pure nHA and (b) pure NiTi
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Fig. 6 shows SEM image and EDS analysis of HA-NiTi composite. According to
the analysis EDS (figure 6(a, b)) Nitinol phase in the composite is well observed
(The presence of a peaks gold is related to gold coat).

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a

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b

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b
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Figure. 6. SEM image of HA-NiTi composite, and EDS analysis of (a) and (b)
points.

3.1. Structural stability of HA phase in HA-NiTi composite

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Fig. 7 shows XRD spectra of HA and HA-NiTi composites sintered at 1150ᵒC.

In all samples, main peaks of hydroxyapatite (26.172°, 32.35°, 33, 34.2°,
46.85°) and slightly phase decomposition to Ca4O (PO4) 2, (28, 47) was
observed in XRD. Furthermore, the peaks at 38.23ᵒ and 60.45ᵒ in the samples is
due to Nitinol. As can be seen, with the increase in the amount of Nitinol, the

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intensity of the peaks NiTi and Ca4O (PO4) 2 is also increased. in addition, any
new compound was observed in XRD that indicates a lack of chemical reaction
between hydroxyapatite and Nitinol.

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4500
H

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HN5
4000

HN10

3500

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HN15

NiTi
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3000
HA

Ca4O(PO4)2
2500
intensity(a.u.)

2000
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1500
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1000
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500

0
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10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90
2 Theta (degree)
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Figure. 7. XRD spectra of HA and HA- NiTi composites.

The presence of OH- ions in the hydroxyapatite structure enables it to heat
temperatures above 1400 °C. But, because of a lower partial pressure of water at
high temperature, dehydration reactions or phase decomposition occurs[7]. Further,
amplifier components also can reduce the structural stability of HA and promote
dehydration reactions and decomposition of hydroxyapatite phase. This can reduce
the ability to densification HA composites[7][26].
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Fig. 8 shows FTIR spectra of pure HA and HA-NiTi composites after

sintering at 1150 ᵒC. In the HA sample, it can be seen the intensity of OH- peak has
decreased slightly (compared with raw HA). The IR spectra of HA-NiTi
composites Showed that by increasing the amount of Nitinol, the intensity of OH-
Group reduced. So that the composite HA-15NiTi, It is observed that the intensity
of vibration peaks for OH- group is very low and a weak shoulder-shape peak

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presents at 630 cm-1. These indicate that OH- ions in HA phase have escaped
clearly. According to what explained before, the existence of NiTi metal phase

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promotes the dehydration and decomposition reaction of HA phase in HA-NiTi
composites.

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Transimittance(arbitrary units)

H
HN5
D

HN10
HN15
TE
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3900 3400 2900 2400 1900 1400 900 400

Wavenumber(cm^-1)

Figure. 8. FTIR spectra of HA-NiTi composites.

3.2. Mechanical properties
Table. 1. shows the characteristics of pure HA ceramic and HA-NiTi
composites. The presence of pores in the final product depends on the initial
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porosity of the green compacts, and process characteristics. The total porosity (PT)
was calculated according to the theoretical and apparent densities as follows (Eq.
(1)):
(%) = (1 − ) × 100 (1)

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The density of compacts ( ) was calculated from the volume (V) and mass
(m) measurement according to the well-known formula (Eq. (2)):

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= (2)

and Theoretical densities (ρT) of all the samples were calculated by using the

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rule of mixture. According to the data reported in the table. 1, can be seen that by
increasing the amount of Nitinol to 10 wt% the density has been increased. Since
the pores provide a mechanical interlock leading to a firm fixation of the material;

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by decreasing density, probably improve mechanical bonding. But because
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porosity decreases mechanical properties, an implant is suitable that along with
porosity, it exhibits good mechanical properties. For this reason, samples with 10%
Nitinol, shows better properties among other samples.
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According to this topic that, the existence of reinforcements can decrease the
stability of HA and promote the dehydration and decomposition of HA phase,
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which can affect the compressibility behavior of HA composites[7]. can be said

that adding of Nitinol, effects on the compressibility behavior of composites.
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According to results of XRD and FTIR analysis, it is observed that by adding

Nitinol stability of HA phase is reduced. As it was observed in the FTIR analysis,
With the addition of Nitinol intensity of the absorption bands of OH group
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dropped. so that the shoulder peak at 15% Nitinol in 630 cm-1 completely removed.
Also in XRD spectra of HA-15NiTi maximum decomposition phase was observed.
Due to the fact that the products of decomposition reaction prevent the sintering
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ability of HA phase, while the product of dehydration has a better sintering ability
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than HA phase[7]. Can be said up to 10% Nitinol that more reaction was for
dehydration, sintering ability increased. This is owing to the increased strength and
density with increased Nitinol. But in 15% Nitinol because of removal, a large
percentage of OH- ions more phase decomposition happened (compared to other
samples). Products produced by the decomposition reactions prevents the
appropriate sintering so density was reduced[7].
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decomposition of HA to some calcium phosphate phases such as tricalcium

phosphate(TCP) and tetra-calcium phosphate(TTCP) is the main reason for the loss
of the mechanical properties of HA. Calcium phosphate phases are brittle and have
weaker strength[9][14]. According to the results of the XRD analysis can be seen,
When 10 wt% NiTi was added, the amount of calcium phosphate phase was less

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than the case of 15 wt% NiTi addition. This is another reason for the higher
compressive strength of the HA-10%NiTi composite.
The density is directly related to the strength and by increasing the density

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strength increases[27]. As it is obvious from the results, strength is increased by
adding Nitinol. The compressive strength of pure hydroxyapatite is 46 MPa that

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increased to 67.67 MPa by adding Nitinol. Maximum strength can be seen in the
composite with 10% Nitinol that has the highest density and strength, by adding
more Nitinol density and strength decreased.

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Elastic modulus with an addition of Nitinol decreased of 89.72GPa in pure
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HA to 25.76 GPa in HA-15 wt% NiTi composite. The reason for this decrease in
the elastic modulus is the low level of elastic modulus in Nitinol. In this study,
with the addition of nitinol to the hydroxyapatite, the elastic modulus has been
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reduced, which is more suitable for a bone substitute[7].

Table. 1. characteristics of pure HA ceramic and HA-NiTi composite.
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Sample code Total porosity Density(g/cm3) Compressive elastic

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(%) strength(MPa) modulus(GPa)

H 32.97 2.118 46 89.72
HN5 29.16 2.295 58.34 42.29
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HN10 26.18 2.438 67.67 36.59

HN15 28.95 2.409 35.67 25.76
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In this study, utilized the hydroxyapatite powder obtained from natural

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sources (calf bone). Values obtained for the strength of HA samples with values
reported by Heidari[25] and Gheisari[24] matched. It was observed that the
addition of Nitinol to 10 wt% compressive strength increased and better
mechanical properties can be achieved.
In order to investigate the mechanism of improving the mechanical
properties of samples that were produced in this study, the images of fracture
surface were prepared. Fig. 9 shows SEM images prepared from the surface. As
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seen in the figure, there are many cracks due to poor mechanical properties of the
matrix. By studying the path of cracks seem there are factors in the way that
prevents the propagation of cracks directly. As can be seen in Fig. 10, cracks in
some parts derailed or completely stopped and unable to continue its route. The
reason for this can be attributed to particles of Nitinol. Nitinol has better

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mechanical properties compared to hydroxyapatite matrix. For this reason, when
crack arrives they, cannot pass. As a result, these particles act as a barrier to crack
and crack deflected or stopped. So Nitinol particles with crack deflection

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mechanism wasting crack energy and improve strength.

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Figure. 9. Scanning electron microscope image obtained from the fracture surface
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(100x magnification).
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Figure. 10. Scanning electron microscope image obtained from the fracture surface
(a)1.80x magnification, b)750x magnification).

By comparing the results obtained in this study with a report published about
metal particles reinforcing, it was observed that also for them deviation crack by
metal particles is a factor that improves the mechanical properties. For example,

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Chu et al. examined the effect of titanium on mechanical properties of
hydroxyapatite. They showed that titanium metal phase promotes dehydration

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reactions of HA phase in the HA-20%Ti composite. These reactions reduce the
manufacturing composite density and thus have a negative effect on the
mechanical properties of the composite. However, Ti particles as agents of

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distorting crack cause improve mechanical properties. This report has been
brought, when cracks arrive the Ti particles deviate into the matrix[7].

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In another report, in order to improve the mechanical properties, silver oxide
powders were used by different volume percentages. It was observed that with the
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addition of silver nanoparticles improves the mechanical properties of
hydroxyapatite with crack bridging and also distract crack mechanisms[26].
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In conclusion, the present study also crack deflection mechanism has been
improved the mechanical properties by adding Nitinol. But in HA-15%NiTi
composite, Factors that cause the loss of the mechanical properties (decomposition
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phases of hydroxyapatite and low density), are greater than improvement factors of
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the mechanical properties. This is due to the low compressive strength of this
composite compared to other samples.
3.3. In vitro behavior
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3.3.1. Cell adhesion

Due to the fact that cell adhesion on the fine-grained surfaces is more than
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the other surfaces [28]. It is expected from nanocomposite samples that are
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generated in this study, to have good cell adhesion.

SEM observation revealed the MG-63 cell attachment on different sample
surfaces. Fig. 11 shows the morphologies of the cells on samples. As can be seen a
large number of cells attached to the surface in all samples. The surface
morphology of cells in contact with samples are plate shape. Which is indicative of
early stages of bone formation.
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a b

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d
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e f

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Figure. 11. SEM micrographs of osteoblasts in contact with samples, (a and b)H, (c
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and d)HN5, (e)HN10, (f)HN15.
3.3.2. MTT assay
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The MTT assay was used to quantitatively determine the proliferation of

viable MG-63cells on the samples surfaces. Fig. 12 shows a comparison of ability
to survive the cells in samples with negative control after 7 and 14 days of culture.
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All samples except HN15 composite showed good proliferation. In conjunction

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with nanohydroxyapatite a lot of research done that has shown great ability to
growth and proliferation of this matter[29][30]. Also, there are reports suggesting
that may be Nitinol show a small amount of toxicity in the early days which is
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related to the release of nickel in this matter. But over time its toxicity reduced and
shows good cell growth and proliferation. In this study, it can be seen that the
addition of Nitinol reduces cell proliferation. But generally up to 10 percent of
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Nitinol, no cell death was seen and nano biocomposites probably can be used in
different medical applications.
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Figure. 12. MTT assay of cells on H, HN5, HN10 and HN15 samples after 7 and
14 days of incubation.

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3.3.3. Alkaline phosphatase assay
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The differentiated function of MG63 cells was assessed by monitoring their
ALP activity. The ALP assay was studied after 7 and 14 days. Fig. 13 shows the
ALP activity of MG63 cells cultured on the samples. Research carried out in
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relation to NiTi samples have shown that this matter improves osteoblast
differentiation and cell growth[31]. But its ability to differentiate osteoblasts is
lower than hydroxyapatite. This leads to the secretion of alkaline phosphatase
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reduced by increasing the percentage of Nitinol. However, the ALP activity in all
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cases is greater than the negative control.

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Figure. 13. the ALP activity of MG63 cells cultured on H, HN5, HN10 and HN15
samples after 7 and 14 days.
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According to the results obtained from biological behavior, it can be said that
HN10 nano biocomposites probably can be used in medical applications.
4. Conclusions
The purpose of this study was to develop nanocomposite for bone tissue
engineering. An ideal replacement for bone tissue engineering should have proper

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mechanical and biological properties. accordingly, this study attempted that by
adding NiTi improve the mechanical properties of hydroxyapatite. Natural HA-

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NiTi nanocomposites with 0, 5, 10 and 15 wt.% NiTi were fabricated by the
powder metallurgy method. The results showed that the mechanical and biological
properties of nanocomposites were influenced by adding NiTi.

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According to the results of this study can be said that:
-Nitinol with the crack diversion mechanism was improved compressive
strength in nanocomposites.
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-XRD and FTIR curve prepared from sintered samples showed that the
Nitinol promotes dehydration and decomposition reactions. New phases caused by
decomposition reactions of HA phase and differences thermal expansion
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coefficient between the HA and NiTi prevents of appropriate sintering, thus

reducing the mechanical properties. It was shown that in HN15 highest
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decomposition reactions happened. For this reason in HN15 composite mechanical

properties decreased.
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- adding Nitinol, strength increases about one and a half times greater. by
comparing the compressive strength results with the cancellous and cortical bone
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compressive strength, it was observed that although by using of Nitinol

compressive strength improved, but still strength much less than bone strength.
Due to the better mechanical properties of synthetic HA this study can also be
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performed on synthetic hydroxyapatite and compared the results with the present
report.
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-Cell studies showed that up to 10 wt% NiTi no toxicity introduced into the
system and show well growth, proliferation and cellular differentiation. In fact,
compared to pure HA growth, proliferation and cellular differentiation of
composite samples are less. But however, most of the sample control.
As a general conclusion, we can say that the composite produced with 10wt% NiTi
has good Mechanical and biological properties so that probably it can be used in
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medical applications. Yet this word( good biological properties) have required
more experiments invivo and invitro to the confirmed truth.

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improve the mechanical properties of HA is proposed.

Nitinol has been used in HA ceramic to improve its mechanical reliability.
NHA- NiTi nanocomposites were fabricated by powder metallurgy.
The structural stability of HA phase in HA- NiTi samples and mechanical
strength of nanocomposites were studied.

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