Metals for Medical Applications

This research project involves the design of new magnesium alloys for biodegradable implants with applications in vascular intervention and osteosynthesis. These implants would be used in areas where permanent reconstruction implants are inadvisable or harmful to the patient, for example to avoid a permanent mechanical strain on a vessel. Specifically, highlyductile magnesium alloys with adjustable degradation performance and Mg-based glasses with high elastic limits are developed and their corrosion properties, mechanical behavior, and biocompatibility are investigated.

Biodegradable metallic glasses for implant materials

The project deals with the development of biologically degradable amorphous metallic alloys for use as implant materials. It also aims to develop suitable processes to produce semi-finished products for medical implants from such metallic glasses. Degradable implants render a second removal surgery unnecessary and open up possibilities for treatments of diseases where permanent devices cannot be used. Therefore, Mg-based amorphous alloys were developed and their corrosion properties, mechanical behavior, and biocompatibility investigated. Because of the unique properties of metallic glasses, a special design had to be developed: fine amorphous wires are now produced by a custom built wire-spin system and their special mechanical properties evaluated.

Advantages: Glass can be made into objects of different shapes or sizes. Glass can be colourless or coloured. Glass does not rust. Glass does not let water to pass through. Disadvantages: Is is a very expensive material It breaks easily. It can melt under very high temperatures.

Applications of Metallic Glasses The advantages offered by amorphous metals in industrial applications are reviewed (good tensile strength, hardness, fatigue, resistance to repeated bending, magnetic properties, corrosion resistance, insensibility to composition variations and a wide variety of alloys which can be made amorphous) together with their disadvantages (completely new technology of production is needed, materials are unstable and their properties may not persist through long product-guarantee periods, only available in thin forms which cannot be welded or brazed. Applications are discussed for amorphous metals currently being considered in the USA, Japan and Europe. The use of amorphous metals for their electromagnetic properties, their mechanical properties, for their chemical properties (catalysts, hydride formation and corrosion resistance) is also discussed. 51 ref.--G.C. |1. They possess high physical and tensile strength. They are more superior than common steels and thus
they are useful as reinforcing elements in concrete, plastic and rubber. 2. Strong ribbons of metallic glasses can be used for simple filament winding to reinforce pressure vessels and also to construct large fly wheels for energy storage. 3. Due to their good strength, high ductility and good corrosion resistance, they are used to make razor blades and different kinds of springs. 4. Since metallic glasses have soft magnetic properties, they are used in tape recorder heads, cores of highpower transformers and metallic shields. 5. Superconducting metallic glasses are be used to produce high magnetic fields and magnetic levitation effect.