Microscopic Analysis of Fractured Screws Used as Implants in Bone Fixation

The increase of life expectancy and risk of accidents, thereby causing a higher incidence of surgeries, has led to a growing use of implants. The reliability of these implants, either for bone fracture correction or for joint replacement, thus used in applications of considerable responsibility, depends on the characteristics of the materials, as well as on the conditions of manufacture. By using some techniques, mainly optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy tests, this work has as purpose the identification of the possible causes of failure of screws used in plates for bone fixation, considering the fracture surface aspects and microstructural characteristics of the austenitic stainless steel used in their manufacture, which is essential for this application. The results obtained in this study allowed the identification of the main causes of the failure, primarily related to fatigue fracture, associated to the presence of surface cracks, generated by stress concentration, which was probably caused by grooves left by improper machining.     

Premature Failure in Orthopedic Implants: Analysis of Three Different Cases

The increasing lifetime of the population on a world-wide scale over the last decades has led to a significant growth in the use of surgical implants for replacement of bones and teeth in affected patients. Other factors, such as scientific-technological development and more frequent exposure of individuals to trauma risk, have also contributed to this general trend. Metallic materials designed for applications in surgical implants, no matter whether orthopedic or dental, must show a group of properties in which biocompatibility, mechanical strength, and resistance to degradation (by wear or corrosion) are of primary importance. In order to reach these aims, orthopedic materials must fulfill certain requirements, usually specified in standards. These requirements include chemical composition, microstructure, and even macrographic appearances. In the present work, three cases of implant failure are presented. These cases demonstrate the most frequent causes of premature failure in orthopedic implants: inadequate surgical procedures and processing/design errors. Evaluation techniques, including optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), were used to evaluate macroscopic and microstructural aspects of the failed implants, and the chemical composition of each material was analyzed. These evaluations showed that design errors and improper surgical procedures of outright violation of standards were the cause of the failures.     

Failure Analysis of Titanium-Based Dental Implant

Metallic materials designed for applications in orthopedic or dental surgical implants must show a group of properties, including biocompatibility, mechanical strength and resistance to degradation (by wear or corrosion) outstand. In order to assure that the properties are achieved, the implant materials must fulfill certain requirements, usually specified in standards. The standards also include chemical composition, microstructure and even macrographic aspects. The main aim of this work was to perform a failure analysis on a titanium-based dental implant and connect the possible causes of failure with the associated material requirements which were previously mentioned. Evaluation techniques included metallographic analysis by optical microscopy and fractographic analysis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results of the examinations suggested that, in spite of their adequate microstructures, the implants fractured due to the overload generated by stress raisers which were found in the implants.     

Customised titanium implant fabricated in additive manufacturing for craniomaxillofacial surgery

Customised implants manufacture has always presented difficulties which result in high cost and complex fabrication, mainly due to patients' anatomical differences. The solution has been to produce prostheses with different sizes and use the one that best suits each patient. Additive manufacturing (AM) as a technology from engineering has been providing several advancements in the medical field, particularly as far as fabrication of implants is concerned. The use of additive manufacturing in medicine has added, in an era of development of so many new technologies, the possibility of performing the surgical planning and simulation by using a three-dimensional (3D) physical model, very faithful to the patient's anatomy. AM is a technology that enables the production of models and implants directly from the 3D virtual model (obtained by a Computer-Aided Design (CAD) system, computed tomography or magnetic resonance) facilitating surgical procedures and reducing risks. Furthermore, additive manufacturing has been used to produce implants especially designed for a particular patient, with sizes, shapes and mechanical properties optimised, for areas of medicine such as craniomaxillofacial surgery. This work presents how AM technologies were applied to design and fabricate a biomodel and customised implant for the surgical reconstruction of a large cranial defect. A series of computed tomography data was obtained and software was used to extract the cranial geometry. The protocol presented was used for creation of an anatomic biomodel of the bone defect for the surgical planning and, finally, the design and manufacture of the patient-specific implant.     

Retrieval and analysis of surgical implants in Brazil: The need for proper regulation

This paper summarizes several cases of metallurgical failure analysis of surgical implants conducted at the Laboratory of Failure Analysis of IPT, in Brazil. Investigation revealed that most of the samples were not in accordance with ISO standards and presented evidence of corrosion assisted fracture. Additionally, some components were found to contain fabrication/processing defects that contributed to premature failure. The implant of nonbiocompatible materials results in immeasurable damage to patients as well as losses for the public investment. It is proposed that local sanitary regulation agencies create mechanisms to avoid commercialization of surgical implants that are not in accordance with standards and adopt the practice of retrieval analysis of failed implants. This would protect the public health by identifying and preventing the main causes of failure in surgical implants.     

Monomer transfer moulding and rapid prototyping methods for fibre reinforced thermoplastics for medical applications

The development of biodegradable materials for surgical applications is a growing area, especially in the area of fracture repair. A fully biodegradable composite has been developed for the manufacture of surgical implants tailored to the patient's injury. This composite consists of a poly-ϵ-caprolactone matrix and a biodegradable glass fibre reinforcement. This paper describes two approaches to the manufacture of such implants using geometries derived from patient scan data: a variant of structural reaction injection moulding or resin transfer moulding, and a rapid prototyping method based upon material deposition modelling.     

Microstructural Investigation on Failure of Internal Drive Shaft

17-4 PH stainless steel is used as internal drive shaft material in liquid engine pumps. One of the drive shafts failed during operation. The shaft pieces were in contact for short duration after failure, which has resulted in abrasion of fractured surfaces. Samples from the location of failure were taken, and investigation of the failure was carried out using optical and scanning electron microscopy. The microstructural analysis of the material and fractographic analysis of the fractured surface show that the failure was caused by excessive torsion.     

Failure analysis of a passenger car coil spring

Investigation on the premature failure of suspension coil spring of a passenger car, which failed within few months after being put into service, has been carried out. Besides visual examination, other experimental techniques used for the investigation were (a) microstructural analysis and fractography by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), (b) inclusion rating by optical microscopy, (c) hardness testing, (d) residual stress measurement by X-Ray diffraction (XRD) and (e) instrumental chemical analysis. Inherent material defect in association with deficient processing led to the failure of the spring.     

MICROSCOPIC FAILURE MECHANISMS OF AN UNIDIRECTIONAL GLASS FIBER COMPOSITE

Abstract— The tensile failure mechanisms and the effects of manufacture flaws on the tensile behavior of an unidirectional composite (E-glass fiber/epoxy matrix) were investigated. Macroscopic failure processes were determined by an enhanced X-ray radiography technique and microstructural changes analysed by both optical and scanning electron microscopy. An axisymmetric finite element model was developed for analysing the microstress distributions in the composite containing broken fibers in order to determine the effect of local fiber volume fraction on the local failure process. Finally, the measurement of the volume fraction distribution of fiber misalignment was carried out and a simple analytical model was proposed to interpret the fiber misalignment effect. A correlation between the fiber misalignment distribution in the specimens and their tensile strengths was obtained statistically.     

Investment casting – developments in microstructural control and mechanical performance

Abstract

The evolution of the ancient craft of lost wax casting into present investment casting practice, associated with a trend from the production of artistic artefacts to the manufacture of critical load bearing components, has resulted in progressive improvements in the mechanical integrity of the castings through systematic microstructural control. In this paper, the factors which influence the principal microstructural characteristics (porosity, grain size and shape, segregation, crystal texture) and the effects of those features on various mechanical properties are examined.

MST/749     

Process and metallurgical evaluation of outlet pigtails damage in the primary steam reformer of an industrial ammonia plant

In spite of improvements in reformer tube metallurgy and manufacture, outlet pigtail tubes are now seen as a critical and weak link component of primary steam reformer in ammonia plants and often require replacement before the reformer tubes. The present work has been focused to find out causes of damaging 12 outlet pigtails of primary steam reformer in the ammonia plant of Shiraz Petrochemical Complex (SPC) after 7–8.5 years of operation from metallurgical and process point of view. A process evaluation based on operating variables and a detailed metallurgical investigation based on microstructural assessment, chemical and reduced thickness analysis, micro hardness measurements, metallography and tensile properties of pigtail samples has been performed. The obtained findings demonstrated that the failure of outlet pigtails was attributed to over-design operating temperatures. Under operation at high temperature, the pigtails undergo the advance stage of irreversible creep and failed before their designing life span.     

Failure analysis of a set of compressor blades

This paper analyses the root causes of the failure of a set of blades belonging to the high pressure compressor of an aircraft engine. All these blades were manufactured using a 718 nickel base alloy. The performed study consisted in a fractographic analysis by scanning electron microscopy and a microstructural study using both scanning and optical microscopy. Phases which were present in the fracture surfaces were identified by means of X-ray energy dispersive spectrometry. As a result of this labour the failure was attributed to the impact of sand and stones; that is the so-called foreign object damage mechanism.     

Osteoblast cell adhesion on a laser modified zirconia based bioceramic

Due to their attractive mechanical properties, bioinert zirconia bioceramics are frequently used in the high load-bearing sites such as orthopaedic and dental implants, but they are chemically inert and do not naturally form a direct bond with bone and thus do not provide osseointegration. A CO₂ laser was used to modify the surface properties with the aim to achieve osseointegration between bioinert zirconia and bone. The surface characterisation revealed that the surface roughness decreased and solidified microstructure occurred after laser treatment. Higher wettability characteristics generated by the CO₂ laser treatment was primarily due to the enhancement of the surface energy, particularly the polar component, determined by microstructural changes. An in vitro test using human fetal osteoblast cells (hFOB) revealed that osteoblast cells adhere better on the laser treated sample than the untreated sample. The change in the wettability characteristics could be the main mechanism governing the osteoblast cell adhesion on the YPSZ.     

铝合金局部热处理技术及其在板材成形中的应用发展现状

铝合金因具有密度低、比强度高、耐蚀性好、回收再生性好等诸多优点,在航空航天、汽车等领域获得广泛的应用。然而铝合金的室温成形性较差,常依靠加热辅助其成形,不仅增加制造成本,降低生产效率,而且严重降低产品表面质量,从而限制其在复杂结构零部件以及高端制造领域中的应用。而局部热处理技术能够有效制备具有梯度性能分布的铝合金差性板,可以改善板材的变形行为和与模具之间的接触摩擦作用,实现调控成形过程中材料的流动时序,从而提高铝合金的室温成形能力。本文系统论述铝合金局部热处理技术的工艺原理及特点,对材料微观组织和力学性能的影响规律,快速加热的实现方式及优缺点,热处理路径的选取、加热温度和保温时间等关键技术,以及在实际板材成形中的应用。详细介绍局部热处理软化和硬化对铝合金板材强韧化的作用和调控机制,对比分析局部热处理提高铝合金板材成形能力的实际效果,从而加快推进该技术在我国高端铝制品加工行业中的实践和应用。     

Evolution of microstructure and mechanical characteristics of friction stir welded ultrafine-grained aluminum alloy 6082

Bulk production of ultrafine-grained material is in great demand presently. Ultrafine-grained material can be synthesized using accumulative roll bonding, which is a prominent severe plastic deformation technique to develop such materials in bulk. There are further challenges in the fabrication of ultrafine-grained material. Friction stir welding is a potential technique to join the ultrafine-grained material while maintaining its mechanical and microstructural characteristics stability as no fusion is required. The present research work demonstrates the microstructural and mechanical characteristics of various welding zone after friction stir welding of ultrafine-grained aluminum alloy 6082. The microstructural features were examined using optical microscopy and the electron back-scattered diffraction technique. The variation in mechanical characteristics was observed using tensile and microhardness tests. The fractography of tensile specimens was studied to identify the mode of failure. The present study demonstrates the viability of friction stir welding to join ultrafine-grained aluminum alloy 6082 developed by accumulative roll bonding. The ultrafine grain size of 0.52 μm was achieved after four accumulative roll bonding cycles. The microhardness of accumulative roll bonding processed samples and the tensile strength of the weld joint were increased about two times and 1.6 times respectively compared to the annealed sample.     

Practical implications of neutron survey instrument performance

Improvements have been made to the Monte Carlo modelling used to calculate the response of the neutron survey instruments most commonly used in the UK, for neutron energies up to 20 MeV. The improved modelling of the devices includes the electronics and battery pack, allowing better calculations of both the energy and angle dependence of response. These data are used to calculate the response of the instruments in rotationally and fully isotropic, as well as unidirectional fields. Experimental measurements with radionuclide sources and monoenergetic neutron fields have been, and continue to be made, to test the calculated response characteristics. The enhancements to the calculations have involved simulation of the sensitivity of the response to variations in instrument manufacture, and will include the influence of the user and floor during measurements. The practical implications of the energy and angle dependence of response, variations in manufacture, and the influence of the user are assessed by folding the response characteristics with workplace energy and direction distributions.     

Damage characterization and modeling of a 7075-T651 aluminum plate

In this paper, the damage-induced anisotropy arising from material microstructure heterogeneities at two different length scales was characterized and modeled for a wrought aluminum alloy. Experiments were performed on a 7075-T651 aluminum alloy plate using sub-standard tensile specimens in three different orientations with respect to the rolling direction. Scanning electron microscopy was employed to characterize the stereology of the final damage state in terms of cracked and or debonded particles. A physically motivated internal state variable continuum model was used to predict fracture by incorporating material microstructural features. The continuum model showed good comparisons to the experimental data by capturing the damage-induced anisotropic material response. Estimations of the mechanical stress–strain response, material damage histories, and final failure were numerically calculated and experimentally validated thus demonstrating that the final failure state was strongly dependent on the constituent particle morphology.     

Characterisation of wear particles produced by metal on metal and ceramic on metal hip prostheses under standard and microseparation simulation

The failure of metal on polyethylene total hip replacements due to wear particle induced osteolysis and late aseptic loosening has focused interest upon alternative bearings, such as metal on metal implants. A recent advance in this field has been the development of a novel ceramic on metal implant. The characteristics of the wear particles generated in this low-wearing bearing have not been previously determined. The aims of this study were to characterise metal wear particles from metal on metal and ceramic on metal hips under standard and adverse (microseparation) wear conditions. Accurate characterisation of cobalt-chrome wear particles is difficult since the reactive nature of the particles prevents them from being isolated using acids and bases. A method was developed to isolate the metal wear particles using enzymes to digest serum containing lubricants from metal on metal and ceramic on metal hip simulations. High resolution scanning electron microscopy was then used to characterise the wear particles generated by both metal on metal and ceramic on metal implants under standard and microseparation wear conditions. The wear particles isolated from all simulations had a mean size of less than 50 nm with a rounded and irregular morphology. No significant difference was found between the size of wear particles generated under any conditions.     

Effects of strain rate and temperature on dynamic mechanical behaviour and microstructural evolution in aluminium–scandium (Al–Sc) alloy

Abstract

The present study applies a compressive split Hopkinson bar to investigate the mechanical response, microstructural evolution and fracture characteristics of an aluminium–scandium (Al–Sc) alloy at temperatures ranging from ? 100 to 300°C and strain rates of 1·2 × 10³, 3·2×10³ and 5·8 × 10³ s^?1. The relationship between the dynamic mechanical behaviour of the Al–Sc alloy and its microstructural characteristics is explored. The fracture features and microstructural evolution are observed using scanning and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The stress–strain relationships indicate that the flow stress, work hardening rate and strain rate sensitivity increase with increasing strain rate, but decrease with increasing temperature. Conversely, the activation volume and activation energy increase as the temperature increases or the strain rate decreases. Additionally, the fracture strain reduces with increasing strain rate and decreasing temperature. The Zerilli–Armstrong fcc constitutive model is used to describe the plastic deformation behaviour of the Al–Sc alloy, and the error between the predicted flow stress and the measured stress is found to be less than 5%. The fracture analysis results reveal that cracks initiate and propagate in the shear bands of the Al–Sc alloy specimens and are responsible for their ultimate failure. However, at room temperature, under a low strain rate of 1·2 × 10³ s^?1 and at a high experimental temperature of 300°C under all three tested strain rates, the specimens do not fracture, even under large strain deformations. Scanning electron microscopy observations show that the surfaces of the fractured specimens are characterised by transgranular dimpled features, which are indicative of ductile fracture. The depth and density of these dimples are significantly influenced by the strain rate and temperature. The transmission electron microscopy structural observations show the precipitation of Al₃Sc particles in the matrix and at the grain boundaries. These particles suppress dislocation motion and result in a strengthening effect. The transmission electron microscopy analysis also reveals that the dislocation density increases, but the dislocation cell size decreases, with increasing strain rate for a constant level of strain. However, a higher temperature causes the dislocation density to decrease, thereby increasing the dislocation cell size.     

Characterization of failure modes for different welding processes of AISI/SAE 304 stainless steels

Weld joints manufactured with a welding electrode type 308L and by three different arc welding processes shielded metal arc welding (SMAW), gas metal arc welding (GMAW) and flux cored arc welding (FCAW) in a AISI/SAE 304 were studied in order to compare the failure mechanisms associated with their mechanical and microstructural properties. Chemical compositions were analyzed by optical emission spectroscopy and the ferrite numbers (FN) of the welds were also identified. Relevant microstructural characteristics of the different processes were analyzed by microscopy techniques. Finally, fatigue tests were performed to study the variations in the mechanical properties of each process and to analyze their most probable failure modes by means of a fractographic study, in which the characteristic morphologies of each one (nucleation, propagation, final fracture) were identified by means of optical stereoscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Three different fracture modes were found at the welding joints that showed correlations with microstructural changes produced during the welding process. The first failure mode displayed that the nucleation of the crack was at the weld root. The second failure mode was generated at the heat affected zone (HAZ), where the crack nucleated due to a variation in the grain size produced by the process and then further propagated through the edge of the weld. The third failure mode appeared due to the presence of exogenous inclusions generated by the welding process, which acted as stress concentrators in the weld and produce the initiation and further propagation of the crack. Lastly, some welding processes presented a combination of the previous failure modes and consequently multiple sites of crack nucleation.