Synthesis of hydroxyapatite assisted by surfactants

Hydroxyapatite (HAp) nanoparticles were synthesized with cationic surfactant, anionic surfactant and nonionic surfactant tuwen 80 respectively. The products were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The results show the characteristic peaks of HAp with size between 75-100 nm, which indicate the successful preparation of HAp nanoparticles. The images of TEM display the needle-like structure of HAp crystals by adding cationic surfactant, however rectangular structure of HAp crystals is obtained by adding anionic surfactant. It revealed that the morphology of HAp could be adjusted by surfactants, which might provide a new way of preparing HAp nanoparticles with controllable morphology.