Abstract a-TCP microspheres were obtained by atomizing aqueous slurries containing 50 wt% of low crystallinity α-TCP and 1 wt% of citric acid. Poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(vinyl alcohol) were tested as a binder. The spray drying process yielded to microspheres with mean diameter around 20 μm and sphericity (horizontal and vertical length ratio) closest to one, which is essential to many applications, such as drug delivery and injectability of cements. The addition of binders was necessary to decrease the amount of loose particles and to improve powder flowability but it also caused a reduction in wettability and surface area. Best results were achieved with 3 wt% of PVA, as the microspheres presented the highest specific surface area, wettability, and sphericity. The microspheres prepared in this study may be used as injectable bone cements precursor since their geometry and flowability would favor paste homogeneity and injectability overcoming many drawbacks of today’s injectable bone cements.

Calcium phosphate cements (CPCs) have potential to be used on repairing damaged bones due to their moldability, bioactivity and bioresorbability. These materials combine calcium orthophosphate powders with a liquid leading to a paste that hardens spontaneously at low temperatures. Hence, CPCs could be applied as scaffolds to support cell/tissue growth. This paper studies CPC scaffolds processing by foaming cement's liquid phase in which was added gelatin and chitosan. The former acted to increase the foam stability while the ladder acted as a foaming agent. Moreover, these polymers would enhance scaffold's biological properties by controlling material's total porosity and in vivo resorption. The method proposed led to scaffolds with 58.71% porosity with sizes ranging from 160 to 760 µm and compressive strength of 0.70MPa. After foaming, pores' size, distribution and interconnectivity changed significantly leading to a material that could be applied on bone regeneration since it would allow nutrient's transport, cell attachment and an increase in material degradation rate.