Fabrication, structural, and mechanical characterization of Y2O3-reinforced Apatite-Wollastonite glass-ceramics for biomedical and radiation shielding applications

Abstract

Fabrication of Apatite-Wollastonite AW glass ceramics with varying Y₂O₃ of 2, 4, and 8 wt.% into the composition (CaO, SiO₂, P₂O₅, MgO, Al₂O₃, CaF₂) was synthesized via powder metallurgy (P/M) process. The structural analysis using X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the pristine AW glass-ceramic were composed of wollastonite and fluorapatite phases, which underwent structural transformation with Y₂O₃ addition, including Y substitution for Ca at 8 wt.% Y₂O₃, decreased wollastonite with an increased fluorapatite and Ca-Y-P phases, and the emergence of YPO₄ phase. Energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) results indicate the presence of Si, Al, Ca, Mg, P, F, and O elements in the structure. The density and hardness of the proposed samples were found to increase from 2.86 g/cm³ to 2.99 g/cm³ and 570 to 618 HV0.1 for the undoped and doped with 8 wt.% Y₂O₃ concentrations. The radiation attenuation properties of the Y₂O₃-doped Apatite-Wollastonite (AW) glass ceramics using Phy-X/PSD and PHITS show an enhancement depending on the additive concentrations. The linear attenuation coefficient (LAC) and mass attenuation coefficient (MAC) increase from 1.9447 to 4.67899 cm^-1 and from 0.6799 to 1.5649 cm^-1 at 0.05 MeV for the undoped AW and doped AW with Y₂O₃ 8 wt.%. The half-value layer decreased and the effective atomic number increased with the addition of Y₂O₃. These results indicate that the AW glass ceramics doped with Y₂O₃ are promising candidates for biomedical applications.