Titanium alloys with ultrafine grains for biomedical applications

Abstract

With the increase in life expectancy, and the consequent ageing of the population the use of biomaterials is becoming increasingly necessary to replace or assist human body parts eventually lost or deteriorated. Ti and Ti alloys have played an important role in this area, because in addition to biocompatibility, mechanical properties usually need to be high, to satisfy mechanical demand, such as for example, in the case of dental implants. Optimization of mechanical properties has justified the research of new alloys or new processing techniques. In this context, this research project aims to use a process of severe plastic deformation (SPD) in titanium and titanium alloys to develop nanostructures of high mechanical strength. The project involves: (a) the choice of alloys, (b) processing via the SPD technique known as high pressure torsion (HPT), (c) the microstructural characterization by scanning (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and (d) measurements of the mechanical properties by means of microhardness tests.