Inhibition of hydroxyapatite precipitation in the presence of fulvic, humic, and tannic acids

The objectives of the present study were to (i) determine if soluble organic materials common in soils and natural waters influence the rate of HAP precipitation and, (ii) determine the mechanism of inhibition of organic constituents on the precipitation of HAP. To accomplish these objectives the authors studied HAP precipitation in controlled seeded crystal growth experiments in the absence and presence of humic, fulvic, tannic, and other smaller molecular weight organic acids. Study materials, methods and results are discussed.