Effect of Si Content on Microstructure and Mechanical Behavior of Porous Ti-22 at% Nb Shape Memory Alloys for Biomedical Applications

Abstract

Our research novel Ti-22Nb biomedical alloys made by powder metallurgy and analyze the effect of adding silicon at various weight ratios to the base alloy (0.4, 0.8, and 1.2 %at Si). In this work, the wear characteristics of Ti-Nb-Si alloys in dry conditions are examined, as well as the wear process. To measure the wear rate, a pin-on-disc wear testing apparatus was employed. The optical microstructure analysis showed that the microstructure had a mixture-like appearance and included only a small quantity of another phase. XRD results showed that the stability of the β phase increased with silicon concentration. The (Ti-22Nb) alloy's hardness and compressive strength both increased once silicon is added. Hardness also rises as the amount of silicon additions increases, with the maximum percentage (1.2 percent Si) resulting in the highest hardness and compressive strength