Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) has presented a new material for medical implants. This was announced by the project manager, Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Scientific and Educational Center "Structural and Functional Materials" of the Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Materials and Transport of SPbPU, Igor Polozov.
The material is based on tantalum, a strong and biocompatible metal. It is non-toxic, unlike aluminum.
Our experiments have shown that adding tantalum to the alloy brings its elasticity closer to the values characteristic of bone tissue. Despite the low modulus of elasticity, alloys containing 15-20% tantalum demonstrate improved mechanical characteristics, including increased strength.
Research has shown that adding tantalum to titanium significantly improves the mechanical characteristics of the alloy. Specialists have produced samples with varying tantalum content and tested them for hardness, tension, and compression.
The new material's characteristics are close to those of human bone. It is planned to be used in the creation of joint endoprostheses, fixation plates and screws in orthopedics, as well as dental implants and their components in dentistry. The high mechanical properties of the alloy open new horizons for the development of durable and effective new generation implants.
Earlier, www1.ru reported that Russian scientists created a bactericidal coating for superelastic titanium implants.
Read materials on the topic:
A Russian soluble patch-implant has been developed for the treatment of oncological diseases
Scientists in Krasnoyarsk have developed gold nanoparticles for the treatment of cancer
Russian scientists have come up with a safe way to treat cancer