Electrospun Calcium Metaphosphate Nanofibers: I. Fabrication

Calcium metaphosphate (CMP) nanofibers with a diameter of ${\sim}600nm$ were prepared using electrospun CMP/polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) fibers through a process of drying for 5 h in air followed by annealing for 1 h at $650^{\circ}C$ in a vacuum. The viscosity of the CMP/PVP precursor containing 0.15 g/ml of PVP was 76 cP. Thermal analysis results revealed that the fibers were crystallized at $569^{\circ}C$. The crystal phase of the as-annealed fiber was determined to be ${\delta}-CMP\;({\delta}-Ca(PO_3)_2)$. However, the morphology of the fibers changed from smooth and uniform (as-spun fibers) to linked-particle characteristics with a tubular form most likely due to the decomposition of the inner PVP matrix. It is expected that this large amount of available surface area has the potential to provide unusually high bioactivity and fast responses in clinical hard tissue applications.