An insight investigation on mechanical and corrosion behavior of ultrasonic squeeze casting processed Mg based alloy composites for bio-implantation
Arunkumar Thirugnanasamabandam, Anand Gobiraman, B Prabhu, Mohammad Rezaul Karim
Abstract
Magnesium (Mg) alloys are gaining prominence in the bio-implantation process due to their low weight, high strength , greater compatibility and ease of biological degradability. However, poor strength and rapid degradation in the physiological environment inhibit their application as implant material . The present experimental investigation examines the effect of Zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ) reinforcement on mechanical and corrosion behaviors of Mg - Tin (Sn) alloy composites, for assessing their feasibility in the targeted field. Mg-5%ZrO 2 , Mg-1%Sn, and Mg-1%Sn/5 % ZrO 2 were fabricated via ultrasonic aided squeeze casting (UASC) process. Characterization studies on the synthesized composites were carried out to evaluate their morphology using SEM with EDAX and XRD . Mechanical properties were evaluated using micro-hardness and compression tests. Furthermore, the corrosion behavior was determined using Tafel and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results revealed that the Mg alloy bio-composite (Mg-1%Sn/5 % ZrO 2 ) exhibits better compression (291.2 MPa) and yield (215.3 MPa) strength, elastic modulus (55.7 GPa), hardness (941.4 MPa) and reduced corrosion rate (0.475 mm/yr) than the base Mg and non-reinforced Mg bio-composite (Mg-1% Sn). Overall, the newly synthesized ZrO 2 reinforced Mg bio-composite would potentially be used as a bio-implantation supportive material in bone fracture related treatments.