Bionanocomposites: Green sustainable materials for the near future

Bionanocomposites are a novel class of nanosized materials. They contain the constituent of biological origin and particles with at least one dimension in the range of 1–100 nm. There are similarities with nanocomposites but also fundamental differences in the methods of preparation, properties, functionalities, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and applications. The article includes two parts. Bionanocomposite definition and classification along with nanoparticles, biomaterials, and methods of their preparation are initially reviewed. Then, novel approaches developed by our team are presented. The first approach concerns the preparation of bionanocomposites from chitosan and nanoparticles. It is based on the regulated charging of polysaccharide by the gradual shift of solution pH. When charges appear, the biomacromolecules come into the electrostatic interactions with negatively charged nanoparticles that cause the jellification of solutions. It is also applied to form films. They have a nacre-like structure from stacked planar nanoparticles separated by aligned biomacromolecules. The second approach deals with the biomimicking mineralization of biopolymers by using a novel silica precursor. Its advantage over the current sol-gel processing is in the compatibility and regulation of processes and structure of generated silica. Another example of the mineralization is presented by titania. Syntheses are performed in anhydrous ethylene glycol. Processes and structure of bionanocomposites are regulated by water that is added in an amount to only hydrate functional groups in the carbohydrate macromolecule.

Bioinspired structure of bioceramics for bone regeneration in load-bearing sites

The major problem with the use of porous bioceramics as bone regeneration grafts is their weak mechanical strength, which has not been overcome to date. Here we described a novel way to solve this problem. Beta-tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP) bioceramics with a bioinspired structure were designed and prepared with a porous cancellous core (porosity: 70-90%) inside and a dense compact shell (porosity: 5-10%) outside that mimics the characteristics of natural bone. They showed excellent mechanical properties, with a compressive strength of 10-80MPa and an elastic modulus of 180MPa-1.0GPa, which could be tailored by the dense/porous cross-sectional area ratio obeying the rule of exponential growth. The in vitro degradation of the bioinspired bioceramics was faster than that of dense bioceramics but slower than that of porous counterparts. The changes in mechanical properties of the bioinspired ceramics during in vitro degradation were also investigated. A concept of the bioinspired macrostructure design of natural bone was proposed which provided a simple but effective way to increase the mechanical properties of porous bioceramics for load-bearing bone regeneration applications. It should be readily applicable to other porous materials.