No abstract

We investigated changes in the microstructure and mechanical properties of biomedical Co20Cr15W10Ni alloys (mass%) containing 8 mass% Mn and 03 mass% Si due to hot forging, solution treatment, cold swaging, and static recrystallization. The ©-phase (M 6 XM 12 X type cubic structure, M: metallic elements, X: C and/or N, space group: Fd-3m ( 227)) and CoWSi type Laves phase (C14 MgZn 2 type hexagonal structure, space group: P63/mmc (194)) were confirmed as precipitates in the as-cast and as-forged alloys. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report that reveals the formation of CoWSi type Laves phase precipitates in CoCrWNi-based alloys. The addition of Si promoted the formation of precipitates of both ©-phase and CoWSi type Laves phase. The solution-treated 8Mn+(0, 1)Si-added alloys exhibited TWIP-like plastic deformation behavior with an increasing work-hardening rate during the early to middle stages of plastic deformation. This plastic deformation behavior is effective in achieving both the low yield stress and high strength required to develop a high-performance balloonexpandable stent. The 8Mn+2Si-added alloy retained the CoWSi type Laves phase even after solution treatment, such that the ductility decreased but the strength improved. Additions of Mn and Si are effective in improving the ductility and strength of the CoCrWNi alloy, respectively.

This is the first report presenting the development of a Co–Cr–W–Ni–Mn alloy by adding 6 mass pct Mn to ASTM F90 Co–20Cr–15W–10Ni (CCWN, mass pct) alloy for use as balloon-expandable stents with an excellent balance of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. The effects of Mn addition on the microstructures as well as the mechanical and corrosion properties were investigated after hot forging, solution treatment, swaging, and static recrystallization. The Mn-added alloy with a grain size of ~ 20 µm (recrystallization condition: 1523 K, 150 seconds) exhibited an ultimate tensile strength of 1131 MPa, 0.2 pct proof stress of 535 MPa, and plastic elongation of 66 pct. Additionally, it exhibited higher ductility and lower yield stress while maintaining high strength compared to the ASTM F90 CCWN alloy. The formation of intersecting stacking faults was suppressed by increasing the stacking fault energy (SFE) with Mn addition, resulting in a lower yield stress. The low-yield stress is effective in suppressing stent recoil. In addition, strain-induced martensitic transformation during plastic deformation was suppressed by increasing the SFE, thereby improving the ductility. The Mn-added alloys also exhibited good corrosion resistance, similar to the ASTM F90 CCWN alloy. Mn-added Co–Cr–W–Ni alloys are suitable for use as balloon-expandable stents.

The Co-20Cr-15W-10Ni (CCWN, mass%) alloy has excellent corrosion resistance and strength-ductility balance and is applied in almost all balloon-expandable stent platforms. To further reduce the invasiveness of stent placement, it is necessary to reduce the diameter of the stent. That is, both high strength and high ductility should be achieved while maintaining a low yield stress. In our previous studies, it was discovered that low-temperature heat-treatment (LTHT) at 873 K improves the elongation of the CCWN alloy. In this study, we focused on the grain refinement by swaging and static recrystallization to improve the strength of the alloy. The as-swaged alloy was recrystallized at 1373–1473 K for 100–300 s, followed by LTHT. A fine grain structure with an average grain size of 3–17 μm was obtained by static recrystallization. The η-phase (M12X-M6X type precipitates, M: metallic elements, X: C and/or N) formed during the recrystallization at 1373–1448 K. The alloys recrystallized at 1448 and 1473 K had a homogeneous structure with a small variation in the grain size. On the other hand, the alloys recrystallized at 1373 and 1423 K had an inhomogeneous structure in which fine and coarse grains were mixed. Both the strength and ductility of the CCWN alloy were improved by combining high-temperature short-time recrystallization and LTHT.