%0 Journal Article
%T Growth and Characterization of Agar Gel Grown Brushite Crystals
%A V. B. Suryawanshi
%A R. T. Chaudhari
%J Indian Journal of Materials Science
%D 2014
%R 10.1155/2014/189839
%X Brushite [CaHPO4¡¤2H2O] or calcium hydrogen phosphate dihydrate (CHPD) also known as urinary crystal is a stable form of calcium phosphate. The brushite crystals were grown by single and double diffusion techniques in agar-agar gel at room temperature. Effects of different growth parameters were discussed in single diffusion and double diffusion techniques. Good quality star, needle, platy, rectangular, and prismatic shaped crystals in single diffusion and nuclei with dendritic growth were obtained in double diffusion. These grown nuclei were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). SEM has shown the different morphologies of crystals; FTIR has confirmed the presence of functional groups; crystalline nature was supported by XRD, whereas the TGA indicates total 24.68% loss in weight and formation of stable calcium pyrophosphate (Ca2P2O7) at 500¡ãC. 1. Introduction Calcium oxalates, phosphates, and their hydrates are very common in calcium renal stones. Some of the oxalates are found in either pure or in mixed form with phosphate and also reported with uric acid or ammonium urates [1, 2]. Calcium oxalate monohydrate [3, 4] and calcium oxalate dihydrate [5] are common constituents of calcium urinary crystal while hydroxypatite [6], carbonate apatite [7], and brushite [8¨C11] are in calcium phosphate crystals. Brushite [CaHPO4¡¤2H2O] provides a medium to grow octacalcium phosphate [12] and hydroxypatite [13¨C16] urinary crystals, however used as a precursor to form apatite, which has an important application in bone formation [17, 18]. Gel method is the most versatile and simple technique for growing urinary crystals [19¨C21]. In this method, gel acts as an inert and viscous medium for the growth of these crystals [22, 23]. The growth inhibition study of brushite crystals are reported in silica gel by adding tamarind, tartaric acid, and citric acid [24, 25] and in the presence of sodium fluoride [26]. Lim et al. [27] have grown three-dimensional flower like brushite crystals from high internal phase emulsion processing route; whereas Kumar and Kalainathan [28] have grown in the presence of magnetic field and observed the effect on growth of these crystals. Parekh et al. [29] have also observed the growth inhibition and dissolution of urinary type micro-CHPD crystals. Most of the brushite crystals reported are grown in silica hydrogel; however the growth of these crystals is not reported in agar-agar gel. In the present work, the brushite
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijms/2014/189839/