Comparison of microstructure, sintering behavior, and biological response of sol-gel and melt-derived 13-93 bioactive glass scaffolds

In this study, 13-93 bioactive glass (BG) powders were obtained through the traditional melt-quenching and solgel approaches and were used to fabricate scaffolds using the well-known foam replica technique. A comparative analysis of scaffolds prepared using sol-gel and melt-derived powders was carried out. The microstructure of scaffolds was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray computed tomography. The shrinkage behavior of the scaffold structure during sintering was investigated using heating microscopy (HM). The bioactivity results indicated the formation of a hydroxyapatite layer on the surface of both scaffolds after immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF) for 7 days. In vitro cell viability results revealed that both scaffolds are cytocompatible with MG-63 cells (osteoblast-like cell line). The findings indicate that sol-gel glass-derived 13-93 scaffolds exhibited similar characteristics to the well-known melt-derived 13-93 scaffolds. Moreover, the low temperature processing and high purity associated with the sol-gel approach suggest that sol-gel derived 13-93 BG powder is attractive for fabricating high-quality scaffolds.