Hydrothermal synthesis of nanorod-assembled porous microspheres of hydroxyapatite/casein using ATP as a phosphorus source and casein sodium salt as a template

• Hydroxyapatite/casein nanorod-assembled porous microspheres are reported.
• A hydrothermal synthesis using ATP and casein sodium salt is developed.
• The method reported is simple, surfactant-free and environment-friendly.

Hydroxyapatite (HAP) is a promising biomaterial with various applications in the biomedical fields. Herein, nanorod-assembled porous microspheres of HAP/casein have been prepared using adenosine 5′-triphosphate disodium salt (Na2ATP) as a phosphorus source, calcium chloride as a calcium source in the presence of casein sodium salt as a template by the hydrothermal method. This method is simple, surfactant-free and environment-friendly. The effect of hydrothermal time on the morphology and crystal phase of the product was investigated. The as-prepared products were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis (TG). The as-prepared HAP/casein nanorod-assembled porous microspheres have promising applications in the biomedical fields.