Improved wear, mechanical, and biological behavior of UHMWPE-HAp-zirconia hybrid nanocomposites with a prospective application in total hip joint replacement

• Published in: Journal of materials science Vol. 54; no. 5; pp. 4259 - 4276
• Main Authors: Salari, Meysam, Mohseni Taromsari, Sara, Bagheri, Reza, Faghihi Sani, Mohammad Ali
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-03-2019; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adhesion tests; Alkaline phosphatase; Biocompatibility; Biological properties; Biomedical engineering; Biomedical materials; Cell adhesion; Cell adhesion & migration; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemistry and Materials Science; Classical Mechanics; Coefficient of friction; Crystallography and Scattering Methods; Diamond pyramid hardness; Dispersion; Enzyme activity; Enzymes; Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid; Hardness; Hot pressing; Joint replacement; Joint surgery; Liquid phases; Materials for Life Sciences; Materials Science; Mechanical properties; Morphology; Nanocomposites; Organic chemistry; Osteoblasts; Phosphatases; Pin on disk tests; Polymer Sciences; Scanning electron microscopy; Solid Mechanics; Surgical implants; Tribology; Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene; Wear; Zirconium dioxide; Zirconium oxide; Hydroxyapatite; Alkaline Phosphatase Enzyme Activity; UHMWPE Matrix; Ultra-high Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE); Hybrid Nanocomposites
• ISSN: 0022-2461; 1573-4803
• DOI: 10.1007/s10853-018-3146-y

Medical engineering advances in total joint replacements and societies’ rising demand for long-lasting materials have proven it essential to manufacture materials that are more similar to the original tissue in the fields of mechanical, tribological, and biological properties. Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) is a polymer widely used in arthroplasty applications due to its biocompatibility, chemical stability, and reasonable mechanical properties; however, it still fails to entirely meet the standards of the hip joint implant. In this study, different concentrations of nanosized zirconia were added to UHMWPE and HAp matrix with an intended application in arthroplasty. Liquid-phase ultrasonication and hot pressing were employed to disperse the reinforcing phases and to form the final standard samples, respectively. Tensile, Vickers hardness, and pin-on-disk tests were carried out to evaluate mechanical and wear properties of the samples. In the meanwhile, in vitro biological properties were studied via MTT assay, alkaline phosphatase enzyme activity, and cell morphology tests. Dispersion features, microstructural structures, and cell adhesion were also assessed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results indicate improvement in both tensile and wear properties by zirconia addition; for instance, the sample containing 10 wt% zirconia and 10 wt% HAp exhibits 45% increase in yield strength and 64% reduction in coefficient of friction. On the other hand, biological properties have also significantly improved with zirconia incorporation, at which all samples proved to be biocompatible with an increase in both osteoblasts activity and cell adhesion with increasing zirconia concentration.