Preparation and characterization of mechanical properties of carbon nanotube reinforced hydroxyapatite composites consolidated by spark plasma sintering

Abstract

Pure hydroxyapatite(HAP) and 0.5,1,2,3,5wt% carbon nanotubes(CNTs) reinforced HAP which mixed by means of magnetic stirring method were consolidated using a spark plasma sintering(SPS) technique at SPS temperature 1273K, pressure 40MPa, and holding time 5min. The mechanical properties of pure HAP and the composites, such as hardness, flexural strength, and fracture toughness were measured. It is demonstrated that 1wt% of CNTs showed the best performance, which density was 95.78%, the Vickers hardness values was 462HV, flexural strength was 69.2MPa. Enhanced strength and toughness are attributed to the pull-out of CNTs and interfacial bonding mechanism between which and HAP during crack propagation. The flexural strength of the composites with 1 to 3wt% of CNTs were at a high level. When the content of CNTs is excessive, the mechanical properties of the material, especially flexural strength, will decrease quickly.