Ion-Substituted Calcium Phosphates Coatings

Dear Colleagues,

Coatings based on hydroxyapatite and calcium phosphates have a significant relevance in several research fields, such as biomaterials, cultural heritage and water treatment, due to their characteristic properties.

Hydroxyapatite can easily accommodate foreign ions, which can either be incorporated into the lattice, thanks to its specific lattice characteristics, or be adsorbed on its surface. All these substitutions significantly alter the morphology, lattice parameters and crystallinity of hydroxyapatite, so they influence its main properties. These ion substitutions can be desired or can derive from substrate contaminations, which is an important aspect to be evaluated. Finally, this capability can be used to obtain hydroxyapatites with specific properties, such as, among others, antibacterial characteristics.

For these reasons, the aim of this Special Issue is to document current advances in the field of ion-substituted hydroxyapatites and highlight possible future perspectives regarding their use. Contributions in the form of original articles and review articles are encouraged, covering different areas of application.

In particular, the topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Synthesis or deposition of ion-substituted calcium phosphate coatings.
• Nucleation of calcium phosphate coatings in the presence of substrate contaminations.
• Antibacterial ion-substituted hydroxyapatites.
• Ion-substituted hydroxyapatites for different applications.
• Relevance of specific ion substitutions (e.g., magnesium, strontium, sodium) on the properties and/or the behavior of substituted hydroxyapatites.
• Novel techniques to improve the control over ion-doping of calcium phosphates.
• Advanced characterization techniques to investigate the properties of the coatings (composition, morphology, mechanical properties, solubility, crystallinity, ion release in different media etc…).

Dr. Gabriela Graziani
Dr. Enrico Sassoni
Guest Editors

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