Porous polyetheretherketone-hydroxyapatite composite: A candidate material for orthopedic implant

Abstract In this paper, a novel porous polyetheretherketone-hydroxyapatite (P-PEEK-HA) composite is designed and fabricated by powder mixing-heat press-alkali cleaning method. FTIR and XRD are employed to determine the component and molecular structure of the P-PEEK-HA composite. The porous layer morphology is evaluated using mercury intrusion porosimetry . FTIR and XRD suggest that there are no new crystalline phase formations during the fabrication process and no change in the crystal structure of the PEEK and HA. Mercury intrusion porosimetry shows that the pore size range is mainly 250.64–16.68 μm, and macro-meso pores larger than 5 nm are also existed. And excitedly, the open porosity of P-PEEK-HA reaches 34.115 ± 1.953%, while its closed-cell porosity is only 0.368 ± 0.022%. The pores can provide connected reticular structure for body fluid transmission and bone cells ingrowth, and HA can improve bioactivity for osseointegration. This work provides valuable basic data for the orthopedic application of P-PEEK-HA composite material, showing its excellent potential in medical engineering.