SBIR Phase II: Novel Titanium Tantalum Materials for Improved Biomedical Implants and Medical Devices

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）二期项目将使用钛钽（Ti-TA）合金，目标是这些材料将成为用于矫形和固定设备的商业合金。Ti-30Ta有潜力成为一种高度生物相容性的植入合金，其模量更接近骨模量（从而减轻骨屏蔽），并且可能比标准钛植入合金对切口更不敏感。该项目还将证明，先进的粉末冶金技术可以生产出用其他方法生产极其困难和昂贵的新型钛合金。这些合金的关键材料性能数据将产生，这将引导医疗设备制造商将这些合金纳入特定设备，并为商业产品发布进行必要的测试和临床试验。使用Ti-Ta合金的更广泛影响将使改进的医疗设备的发展能够持续更长时间；侵入性较小，促进患者更快的恢复时间，并最大限度地减少不良反应的风险。骨科和心血管产品的进步也将大大降低与此类医疗条件和外科手术有关的短期和长期保健费用。Ti-Ta材料在机械性能、形状记忆和超弹性性能方面也将为非生物医学应用提供优势。例如，这种材料还可以提供改进的性能，如耐腐蚀、抗氧化和耐高温。因此，除了生物医学应用之外，这些合金的可用性将适用于各种工业，消费和航空航天产品，从而产生巨大的商业潜力。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will use Titanium-Tantalum (Ti-TA) alloys, with the objective that these materials will become commercial alloys used in orthopaedic and stinting devices. Ti-30Ta has potential as a highly biocompatible implant alloy with a modulus closer to that of bone (thus mitigating bone shielding), and is potentially less notch-sensitive than standard titanium implant alloys. This project will also demonstrate that advanced powder metallurgy can produce novel titanium alloys that are extremely difficult and prohibitively expensive to produce by other means. Critical material property data of these alloys will be generated that will lead medical device manufacturers to incorporate these alloys into specific devices and to conduct the necessary testing and clinical trials for commercial product release. The broader impacts from the use of Ti-Ta alloys will enable the development of improved medical devices that will last longer; are less invasive, promote faster patient recovery times and minimize the risk of adverse reactions. Advances in orthopedic and cardiovascular products will also significantly reduce short-term and long-term health care costs associated with such medical conditions and surgical procedures. Ti-Ta materials will also offer advantages for non-biomedical applications, in regard to mechanical properties as well as to shape memory and superelastic properties. For example, such materials can be expected to also offer improved properties such as resistance to corrosion, oxidation and high temperatures. Thus, availability of these alloys will be applicable to a wide variety of industrial, consumer and aerospace products in addition to biomedical applications, resulting in significant commercial potential.