On May 16, 2020 The Autonomous institutes under the Department of Science & Technology(DST) namely The International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials(ARCI) and Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and technology(SCTIMST) have jointly developed new generation Iron-Manganese(Fe-Mn) based alloys for biodegradable metal implants for use in humans.
- The newly developed alloys are suitable for biodegradable stent and orthopedic implant applications. Invivo and in-vitro studies are being planned by the team at Sri Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences.
Major Highlights
i.Biodegradable materials like Fe, Magnesium(Mg), Zinc(Zn), and polymer participate in the healing process & gradually degrade by maintaining mechanical integrity.
ii.They do not leave any implant residues in the human body & are better alternatives to currently used metallic implants which remain permanently in the human body which can cause long-term side effects like systemic toxicity, chronic inflammation, and thrombosis.
iii.Degradation process- During this process, calcium phosphate deposits in the implant due to local alkalization and saturation of calcium and phosphate allowing cells to adhere to the surface to form tissues.
Key Points
i.The ARCI team has employed conventional melting and powder metallurgy techniques in manufacturing of the new Fe-Mn based biodegradable alloys and stents with diameter- 2 millimeter(mm), Length- 12 mm and Wall thickness- 175 micrometer(µm).
ii.The Iron-Manganese based alloy Fe-Mn (Mn composition of more than 29% by weight) is a encouraging biodegradable metallic implant which exhibits a single austenitic phase (non-magnetic form of iron) with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)compatibility.
iii.Further efforts are made to achieve control in corrosion rates through alloying addition and surface engineering and to employ advanced manufacturing processes like additive manufacturing to realize complicated shapes.
About ARCI:
Headquarters– Hyderabad, Telangana
Chairperson– Dr. Anil Kakodkar
Director- Dr G. Padmanabham
About SCTIMST:
Headquarters– Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
President–Â Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat
Director–Â Dr Asha Kishore
