Fabrication of hydroxyapatite-based scaffold and improvement of hardness by control addition of silica

• Scaffolds were fabricated by using a simple compression technique . • Different properties were explored to check their probability as a biomaterial. • 1 % silica containing composited showed 175 % improvement of hardness. Pure hydroxyapatite is a well-known biomaterial for orthopedic applications, but in pure form, it lacks high strength; thus, a composite was fabricated for load-bearing application in this research. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) nano-crystalline materials were synthesized using a wet chemical approach to fabricate scaffolds. To investigate the impact of SiO 2 inclusion on the characteristics of pure HAp-based scaffold, nanocomposites with varying wt % of SiO 2 were produced (0, 0.5, 1, and 1.5 %). The scaffolds were fabricated using the compression method and subsequently analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), simulated body fluid (SBF), water uptake, density, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, pH behavior, and hardness. FT-IR spectroscopy has been employed to study the physical relationship between silica and HAp. Including 1 % silica resulted in comparatively excellent hardness qualities (175 % improvement) compared to pure HAp. SEM study of HAp/SiO 2 nanocomposite reveals the SiO 2 incorporation facilitated the bridging among the HAp particles. The presence of SiO 2 boosted the mechanical properties and density of the composite scaffold. The composite with 1 % SiO 2 contributed to an increase in density of nearly 1 %.