Taposh Roy

Tribological investigation of diamond-like carbon coated micro-dimpled surface under bovine serum and osteoarthritis oriented synovial fluid

Abstract Osteoarthritis-oriented synovial fluid (OASF), i.e., that typical of a patient with osteoarthritis, has different physical and biological characteristics than bovine serum (BS), a lubricant widely used in biotribological investigations. Micro-dimpled and diamond-like carbon- (DLC) coated surfaces are key emerging interfaces for orthopedic implants. In this study, tribological performances of dimpled surfaces, with and without DLC coating, have been investigated under both BS and OASF. The friction tests were performed utilizing a pin on a disk tribometer, whereas contact pressure, speed, and temperature were simulated to a ‘medium walking gait’ of hip joint conditions. The mechanical properties of the specimen and the physical properties of the lubricant were characterized before the friction test. Raman analysis was conducted to identify the coating condition both before and after the test. The DLC-coated dimpled surface showed maximum hardness and residual stress. A DLC-coated dimpled surface under an OASF lubricated condition yielded a lower friction coefficient and wear compared to those of plain and dimpled specimens. The higher graphitization of coated materials with increasing load was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy.

Tribological performance of the biological components of synovial fluid in artificial joint implants

Abstract The concentration of biological components of synovial fluid (such as albumin, globulin, hyaluronic acid, and lubricin) varies between healthy persons and osteoarthritis (OA) patients. The aim of the present study is to compare the effects of such variation on tribological performance in a simulated hip joint model. The study was carried out experimentally by utilizing a pin-on-disk simulator on ceramic-on-ceramic (CoC) and ceramic-on-polyethylene (CoP) hip joint implants. The experimental results show that both friction and wear of artificial joints fluctuate with the concentration level of biological components. Moreover, the performance also varies between material combinations. Wear debris sizes and shapes produced by ceramic and polyethylene were diverse. We conclude that the biological components of synovial fluid and their concentrations should be considered in order to select an artificial hip joint to best suit that patient.

Tribological investigation of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene against advanced ceramic surfaces in total hip joint replacement

The aim of the study was to investigate whether a modified ceramic head surface could reduce the friction and wear rate of simulated ceramic-on-polyethylene hip joints. To address this aim, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) was made to slide on aluminium oxide (Al2O3), dimpled Al2O3, diamond-like carbon (DLC) coated and DLC-coated dimpled substrates. The experiment condition was replicated to simulate artificial hip joints in terms of contact pressure, speed and temperature. UHMWPE on non-dimpled Al2O3 showed lower friction coefficient and wear rate compared to other advanced surfaces. Lower wettability, and higher hardness and surface adhesion of DLC resulted in increased friction and wear. The high difference in modulus of elasticity and hardness between UHMWPE and both, Al2O3 and DLC, reduced the effectiveness of textured surface techniques in friction and wear reduction. Therefore, no tribological benefit was found by fabricating either DLC coating or surface texturing on hard surface when rubbed against softer UHMWPE.

Laser Cladding for Railway Repair: Influence of Depositing Materials and Heat Treatment on Microstructural Characteristics

The contact between train wheels and rail tracks is known to induce material degradation in the form of wear, and rolling contact fatigue in the railhead. Laser cladding, a state of the art surface engineering technique, is a promising solution to repair damaged railheads so as to alleviate the rates of degradation and extend the component longevity. In this paper, effects of cladding material and heat treatment on microstructures of laser treated rails is presented. Laser cladding of premium hypereutectoid rail, four different depositing materials, and different heat treatments were investigated. For the preheating length of 400 mm, equal to the cladding length, the formation of martensite in heat affected zone (HAZ) was not hindered by the application of preheating to 350 °C on the rail-longitudinally deposited railhead of the four materials. Consequentially, cracking in the clad and HAZ was expected. An uncracked microstructure with excellent microstructural consistency across the entire rail-longitudinally deposited railhead and its HAZ was established using a heat treatment combination consisting of pre-heating, postheating, and slow cooling, regardless of the depositing materials.