A low-temperature sol gel route for the synthesis of bioactive calcium silicates

Sol-gel-derived bioactive calcium silicates, synthesized from calcium nitrate tetrahydrate and calcium 2-methoxyethoxide as calcium precursor respectively, were calcified under different temperatures. A series of techniques including SEM, TGA, solid Si-29 NMR, nitrogen adsorption, and simulated body fluids (SBF) soaking were employed to study their textural features and in vitro bioactivity. It was confirmed that calcium 2-methoxyethoxide is a promising candidate of calcium precursor for bioactive calcium silicates stabilized under low temperatures. This has implications in fabrication of organic-inorganic hybrid composites. (C) 2013 Dong Qiu. Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society. All rights reserved.