Manufacture, Mechanical Properties and Metallurgy of Metallic Biomaterials

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Biobased and Biodegradable Metals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2022) | Viewed by 11733

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Facultad de Ingeniería Mecánica y Eléctrica (FIME), Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (UANL), Av. Universidad S/N, San Nicolás de los Garza 66455, Nuevo León, Mexico
Interests: biomaterials; tribology; manufacture
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to publish original papers related to the manufacture, mechanical properties, and metallurgy of metallic biomaterials. Metallic biomaterials have been successfully used since the last century, with a great impact on millions of people around the world.  There are many applications in orthopedic (bone plates, screws, and hip and knee artificial joints), dentistry (dental implants, bridges, dentures, etc.), cardiology (blood vessels fixation devices, vascular stents, catheter guide wires, artificial heart valves, and pacemakers), and other applications like surgical kits or metallic devices that interact with human soft tissues. 

Examples of relevant topics include the following:

  • Manufacturing processes: machining, forming, casting, and additive manufacturing, as well as other manufacturing process including engineered surface (PVD, CVD, etc.), and surface and finishing treatment processes, in order to obtain functionalized properties including osseointegration and antibacterial improvements. Clinical cases about the metallic prosthetic devices’ behavior and its relation to the design, material structure, and manufacturing process.
  • Mechanical properties related to specific manufacturing parameters and processes. Design of prosthetic devices, including computer simulation and experimental validation. The study of the tribological and fatigue properties of metallic biomaterials used in prosthetic implants and devices for total and partial joints, as well as novel techniques to evaluate mechanical properties.
  • Metallurgy of alloys employed for biomedical applications, including the design of alloys, heat treatments, thermochemical surface treatments, and assessment of its properties, including resistance corrosion. Characterization studies using different laboratory techniques and failure analysis of retrieval prosthetic metallic devices are included.  

Prof. Dr. Marco A. L. Hernandez-Rodriguez
Guest Editor

Keywords

  • metallic biomaterials
  • biometals
  • prosthetic devices
  • metallurgy
  • mechanical properties
  • biotribology
  • total joints replacements
  • bone plates
  • dental implants

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 6599 KiB  
Article
Statistical Data-Driven Model for Hardness Prediction in Austempered Ductile Irons
by Nelly Abigaíl Rodríguez-Rosales, Félix Alan Montes-González, Oziel Gómez-Casas, Josué Gómez-Casas, Jesús Salvador Galindo-Valdés, Juan Carlos Ortiz-Cuellar, Jesús Fernando Martínez-Villafañe, Daniel García-Navarro and Carlos Rodrigo Muñiz-Valdez
Metals 2022, 12(4), 676; https://doi.org/10.3390/met12040676 - 15 Apr 2022
Viewed by 2263
Abstract
This research evaluates the effect of temperature and time austempering on microstructural characteristics and hardness of ductile iron, validating the results by means of a statistical method for hardness prediction. Ductile iron was subjected to austenitization at 950 °C for 120 min and [...] Read more.
This research evaluates the effect of temperature and time austempering on microstructural characteristics and hardness of ductile iron, validating the results by means of a statistical method for hardness prediction. Ductile iron was subjected to austenitization at 950 °C for 120 min and then to austempering heat treatment in a salt bath at temperatures of 290, 320, 350 and 380 °C for 30, 60, 90 and 120 min. By increasing austempering temperature, a higher content of carbon-rich austenite was obtained, and the morphology of the thin acicular ferrite needles produced at 290 °C turned completely feathery at 350 and 380 °C. A thickening of acicular ferrite needles was also observed as austempering time increased. An inversely proportional behavior of hardness values was thus obtained, which was validated through data analysis, statistical tools and a regression model taking temperature and time austempering as input variables and hardness as the output variable, which achieved a correlation among variables of about 97%. The proposal of a mathematical model for the prediction of hardness in austempered ductile iron represents a numerical approximation which validates the experimental results at 95.20%. Full article
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11 pages, 3032 KiB  
Article
Sn Content Effects on Microstructure, Mechanical Properties and Tribological Behavior of Biomedical Ti-Nb-Sn Alloys Fabricated by Powder Metallurgy
by Fangxia Xie, Hao Yang, Jiabing Huang, Jinghu Yu and Xueming He
Metals 2022, 12(2), 255; https://doi.org/10.3390/met12020255 - 29 Jan 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2058
Abstract
A group of Ti-10Nb-xSn alloys with Sn content varying from 0 to 8 wt.% were fabricated from blended elemental powders using powder metallurgy processing. The effects of the Sn content on the microstructure, mechanical performance, and tribological behavior were investigated. The results showed [...] Read more.
A group of Ti-10Nb-xSn alloys with Sn content varying from 0 to 8 wt.% were fabricated from blended elemental powders using powder metallurgy processing. The effects of the Sn content on the microstructure, mechanical performance, and tribological behavior were investigated. The results showed that Ti-10Nb-xSn alloys with high density could be fabricated using powder metallurgy. When the Sn content increased from 0 to 8 wt.%, the density increased slightly from 96.76% to 98.35%. The alloys exhibited a typical α + β microstructure. As the Sn content increased, the dendritic β grains gradually converted into a laminar α + β structure, accompanied by intergranular α and a small number of micropores. The elastic modulus of the alloys decreased with increasing Sn content but not significantly (73–76 GPa). The addition of Sn initially reduced the Vickers hardness, compressive strength, and maximum strain. When Sn was added up to 5 wt.%, these properties tended to increase slowly in the ranges 310–390 HV, 1100–1370 MPa, and 15.44–23.72%, respectively. With increasing Sn content, the friction coefficient of the alloys increased from 0.41 to 0.50. Without Sn, Ti-10Nb was dominated by abrasive wear. The wear mechanism of Ti-10Nb-3Sn and Ti-10Nb-5Sn changed to adhesive wear together with abrasive wear with increasing Sn content, while Ti-10Nb-8Sn predominately exhibited adhesive wear. Compared with Ti-10Nb alloy, an appropriate amount of Sn could achieve a lower elastic modulus, while Vickers hardness and compressive strengths were little changed. Moreover, it had a minor influence on the friction coefficient. The good mechanical performance and wear resistance make the powder-metallurgy-fabricated Ti-10Nb-xSn alloys attractive candidates for biomedical materials. Full article
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13 pages, 4939 KiB  
Article
Surface, Chemical, and Tribological Characterization of an ASTM F-1537 Cobalt Alloy Modified through an Ns-Pulse Laser
by Carlos A. Cuao Moreu, Demófilo Maldonado Cortés, María del Refugio Lara Banda, Edgar O. García Sánchez, Patricia Zambrano Robledo and Marco Antonio L. Hernández Rodríguez
Metals 2021, 11(11), 1719; https://doi.org/10.3390/met11111719 - 28 Oct 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1909
Abstract
Metallic biomaterials are considered safe materials for the fabrication of orthopedic prostheses due to their mechanical stability. Among this group, cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloys are commonly used. Nevertheless, adverse reactions on tissues caused by the liberation of metallic ions are a limitation. Therefore, the modification [...] Read more.
Metallic biomaterials are considered safe materials for the fabrication of orthopedic prostheses due to their mechanical stability. Among this group, cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloys are commonly used. Nevertheless, adverse reactions on tissues caused by the liberation of metallic ions are a limitation. Therefore, the modification of biometallic material surfaces has become a topic of interest, especially the improvement of the wear resistance to retard the degradation of the surface. In this work, dimples obtained at different processing parameters by an ns-pulse laser were texturized on an ASTM F-1537 cobalt alloy. Surfaces were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The mechanical integrity of the surface was evaluated using a 3D surface analyzer and Vickers indentation tests. The tribological response was studied employing a ball-on-disc tribometer under lubricated conditions tracking the coefficient of friction, volume loss, wear rate, and surface damage by SEM. The variation of the laser power, repetition rate, and process repetitions slightly modified the chemistry of the surface (oxides formation). In addition, the rugosity of the zone treated by the laser increased. The texturized samples decreased the wear rate of the surface in comparison with the untreated samples, which was related to the variation of the dimple diameter and dimple depth. Full article
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17 pages, 1524 KiB  
Article
In Vitro Biocompatibility Evaluation of a New Co-Cr-B Alloy with Potential Biomedical Application
by María Cristina Garcia-Mendez, Victor Hugo Urrutia-Baca, Carlos A. Cuao-Moreu, Ernesto Lorenzo-Bonet, Melvyn Alvarez-Vera, David Mizael Ortiz-Martinez and Myriam Angelica de la Garza-Ramos
Metals 2021, 11(8), 1267; https://doi.org/10.3390/met11081267 - 11 Aug 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2711
Abstract
Cobalt–chromium (Co-Cr) alloys have been used in a wide variety of biomedical applications, including dental, cardiovascular, and orthopedic devices. In vitro studies have shown that the mineralization of cells involved in osteogenesis is regulated by boron. The development of a new cobalt-chromium-boron (Co-Cr-B) [...] Read more.
Cobalt–chromium (Co-Cr) alloys have been used in a wide variety of biomedical applications, including dental, cardiovascular, and orthopedic devices. In vitro studies have shown that the mineralization of cells involved in osteogenesis is regulated by boron. The development of a new cobalt-chromium-boron (Co-Cr-B) alloy improves the mechanical properties of the metal, such as wear resistance, and meets biocompatibility requirements. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the osteogenic differentiation and biocompatibility in in vitro assays. Human dental pulp mesenchymal cells (hDPSCs) were isolated from volunteers and then co-cultured with the Co-Cr plus boron alloy from 0.3% to 1% for 15 days, while the formation of calcium deposits was quantified by Alizarin red staining and the expression of genes was related to osteodifferentiation by RT-qPCR. Simultaneously, the cytotoxicity of our alloy was evaluated by MTT assay and the change in the gene expression of cytokines commonly associated with inflammatory processes. The results showed low cytotoxicity when cells were treated with the Co-Cr-B alloy, and no change in the gene expression of IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8 was observed compared to the untreated control (p > 0.05). The osteoinduction results shown an increase in mineralization in hDPSCs treated with Co-Cr-B alloy with 1.0% B. In addition, a significant increase in mRNA levels for collagen type 1 in with 0.3% boron and alkaline phosphatase and Runx2 with 0.6% boron were observed. The addition of Boron to the ASTM F75 Co-Cr base alloy improves the biocompatible characteristics. No cytotoxicity and any change of the expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8 in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells treated with the cobalt-chromium-boron alloy was observed in vitro assays. Furthermore, our alloy acts as an osteoinductive in osteogenic differentiation in vitro. Therefore, our results could set the standard for the development of in vivo trials and in the future, it could be considered as an alternative for regenerative therapy. Full article
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11 pages, 4447 KiB  
Article
Tribological Performance of CoCrMo Alloys with Boron Additions in As-Cast and Heat-Treated Conditions
by Marco A. L. Hernandez-Rodriguez, Diego E. Lozano, Gabriela M. Martinez-Cazares and Yaneth Bedolla-Gil
Metals 2021, 11(2), 355; https://doi.org/10.3390/met11020355 - 19 Feb 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1851
Abstract
The present study evaluates the effect of boron additions on the tribological performance of CoCrMo alloys. The alloys were prepared with boron ranging from 0.06 to 1 wt%. The materials were characterized using metallographic techniques, scanning electronic microscopy, and roughness and hardness tests. [...] Read more.
The present study evaluates the effect of boron additions on the tribological performance of CoCrMo alloys. The alloys were prepared with boron ranging from 0.06 to 1 wt%. The materials were characterized using metallographic techniques, scanning electronic microscopy, and roughness and hardness tests. Tribological evaluation was made by means of ball-on-disc tests for sliding distances of 4, 8 and 12 km. The samples were in the as-cast condition and after a heat treatment at 1200 °C for 1 h, finished by water quenching. The results showed that wear resistance was influenced by the microstructure and the number of secondary phases. The volume loss decreased as the boron content increased. Due to hard phases, abrasion wear was observed. Delamination fatigue was also detected after long sliding distances. Both wear mechanisms diminished in higher boron content alloys. Full article
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