UNAM scientists use rice husk to create bone substitute

With ash of rice husk, scholar Norma Angélica Sánchez from the Applied Sciences and Technological Development Center (CCADET) at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) , is looking to develop a substitute of synthetic bone.

Rice husk is an industrial waste that is used as support material in some types of cement

and contains certain properties that could be used to create bone-material. “What we obtain from rice husk is a white powder rich in silicon –between 92 and 95 percent- , which is the raw material we use to make bioactive glass for the fabrication of bones,” she explained.

The research team obtained the rice husk waste from a project at the San José mill located in Juitepec, Morelos .

In order to obtain the bone substitute, she explained, the rice husk is burned and the silica is extracted to be used as raw material. Later on, the material is combined with other commercial products to obtain the correct composition of sodium, calcium, and phosphorus in a gel that is then burned again to obtain the bioactive glass .

This method has the potential to reduce production costs by 50% compared with traditional bioactive glass. The material elaborated with rice husk allows to create geometric shapes with a particular volume, since it is a porous material that can be used directly as a bone substitute.

Mexican scientists create Eco-friendly cement out of industrial waste

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