Studies on polymer matrix composites for human implants

Abstract

The present research work has been carried out for the utility and newlinedevelopment of new polymer matrix composite (PMC) in bone implants to newlinesubstitute the metallic implants. The composites with fillers i) Calcium newlinecarbonate (CaCO3), (ii) Graphene oxide (GO), and iii) Zinc oxide (ZnO) nano newlineparticulates reinforced High-Density Poly Ethylene (HDPE) composite with newlinedifferent weight percentages (0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0 wt.%) through newlinecompression molding technique. newlineThe fabricated composites were evaluated by shore D hardness and newlinefound the maximum hardness of 71.0 SHN for 0.6 wt. % GO nanoparticle newlinereinforced HDPE nanocomposite. The test results of hardness, wear, and newlinecompressive strength revealed that the 0.6 wt. % of GO/HDPE composite newlineshowed better results compared to CaCO3/HDPE and ZnO/HDPE composites. newlineHence the 0.6 wt. % GO/HDPE composite was an best choice for further newlinestudies. The fatigue test result shows that the material can withstand for newlinelonger period with high number of cyclic load. newlineHydroxyapatite (HAp) is a biocompatible material which can be used newlinefor bone tissue regeneration. Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) / Polyvinyl Alcohol newline(PVA) polymers have water-soluble properties and have faster biodegradation newlineproperties. The PVA-PEG-HAp thin membrane was cast by using the newlinetransparent solution petri-dish method. PVA-PEG-HAp thin membrane was newlinecoated on HDPE composite to increase cell growth and cell adhesion to the newlinematerial. newline