Degradation behavior of novel Fe/ß-TCP composites produced by powder injection molding for cortical bone replacement

When it comes to bone replacement in load-bearing areas, there are currently no adequate biodegradable implants available. Several non-degradable metallic materials fulfill the requirements of biocompatibility and mechanical strength. However, besides magnesium, only iron is a degradable metallic material. The aim of this long-term degradation study was to investigate the effects of iron beta-tricalcium phosphate interpenetrating phase composite on degradation rate and strength in comparison to pure iron. Cylindrical samples with 0–50 vol% beta-tricalcium phosphate (ß-TCP) were prepared by powder injection molding. In addition to dense samples, porous iron samples with a porosity of 60.3 % were produced with polyoxymethylene as a placeholder. Dense and porous samples were immersed in 0.9 % sodium chloride solution (NaCl) or in phosphate buffered saline solution (PBS) for 56 days. Following immersion, the degradation rate, compressive yield strength, and ion release were determined. A maximum degradation rate of 196 µm/year was observed after 56 days for iron with 40 vol% ß-TCP. This was found to be 28 % higher than for pure iron. After immersion, the compressive yield strength of pure iron decreased by 44 % (NaCl) and 48 % (PBS). In comparison, iron with 40 % ß-TCP samples lost <1 % (NaCl) and 9 % (PBS) of strength following immersion. It was demonstrated that the solubility of calcium phosphate enhanced the corrosion processes and led to an increase in degradation, thus showing that the addition of ß-TCP to pure iron can be a promising route for a novel degradable bone substitute material, particularly for load-bearing areas due to the increased strength.