Development of Ti-26Nb-1.2TiC shape memory composite for biomedical applications

Ti-Nb alloys have great potential in biomedical applications as bone-implant materials due to their low elastic modulus,superelasticity,high corrosion resistance,and good biocompatibility.However,the low yield strength and poor superelasticity of Ti-Nb alloys restrict their practical clinical applications.Here,we report the mechanical properties and superelasticity,corrosion behavior,and biocompatibility of a Ti-26 at.%Nb-1.2 vol.%TiC(Ti-26Nb-1.2TiC)shape memory composite(SMC)prepared by vacuum arc melting and hot rolling.The yield strength,critical stress for inducing martensitic transformation,and elongation of the Ti-26Nb-1.2TiC SMC and a Ti-26Nb alloy were 460 and 337 MPa,251 and 115 MPa,and 27.2%and 24.1%,respectively.The recovery rate of the SMC under 4%pre-strain reached 91.4%,which was 1.2 times that of the Ti-26Nb.Electrochemical tests in Hanks’solution revealed that the corrosion current density,passive current density,and corrosion rate of the SMC were lower than those of the Ti-26Nb.Both the Ti-26Nb alloy and Ti-26Nb-1.2TiC SMC showed good cell viability with grade 0 cytotoxicity in relation to MG-63 osteosarcoma cells.