Abstract
Mg alloy is suitable for biomedical implants as the mechanical properties of Mg are close to those of human bone. Ca is a major element in bone and Zr has a great grain refinement effect. Hence, we developed Mg-1Ca-0.5Zr alloy (XK105) as a biodegradable biomaterial and investigated its mechanical properties and surface corrosion mechanism. The results showed that heat treatment made the secondary phase homogeneous. Tensile tests showed that the heat treatment increased ductility, and that the tensile stress results in the extrusion direction showed better ductility than that in the transverse direction because of the fiber texture and extrusion characteristics. Electrochemistry test results showed that XK105 after heat treatment had a lower corrosion rate than that before heat treatment and that of pure Mg. XK105 after heat treatment formed a calcium phosphate layer after immersion in simulated body fluid; this layer protects Mg from corrosion. Surface roughening treatment increased corrosion because pits on the surface promoted pitting corrosion. This study developed Mg-1Ca-0.5Zr alloy as a biomedical implant material. The results can be used as a reference for the biomedical material industry.
Highlights
Common biomedical implant materials include metals, polymers, and ceramics
A 99.9 wt.% pure Mg block was placed in a stainless-steel bowl and heated to 700 ◦ C until the Mg block had completely melted into a liquid state
A Zr-rich phase can be seen in Figure 2b; the phase was identified as pure Zr particles which accumulated at grains [32]
Summary
Common biomedical implant materials include metals, polymers, and ceramics. Metal-based biomedical materials have better mechanical properties than those of polymers and ceramics [1] and are much more widely used in practical applications. Common metal-based biomedical materials such as stainless steel [2], Ti alloys [3], and Co-based alloys [4] have elastic moduli that are very different from that of human bone This leads to a stress shielding effect, which makes new bone tissues lack stimulation during growth and leads to insufficient recovery of bone strength [5]. Another disadvantage of common metal-based biomedical materials is their non-degradability [6]; they must be removed in a second operation after the affected area has recovered. The results can be used as a reference for the biomedical material industry
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