Friction and wear properties of ultra-high molecular mass polyethylene reinforced with Al2O3 nano-particle

摘要

The ultra-high molecular mass polyethylene (UHMMPE) as an artificial joint acetabular material was filled with nano-powder of Al2O3 of various mass fractions. The effect of Al2O3 mass fraction on the hardness, wetting property and tribological properties of the Al2O3-UHMMPE composites under dry friction sliding against both stainless steel and Ti-6Al-4V alloy was investigated. The morphologies of the worn surfaces of composites were observed with optical microscope. The results show that, wetting property and wear resistance of the composites are improved by filling Al2O3, while the friction coefficient is decreased largely under dry friction as compared with that of the unfilled UHMMPE. This is attributed to the reinforcing function of the nano-powder of Al2O3 in the composites. The wear of UHMMPE is dominated by plowing, plastic deformation and fatigue wear; while the Al2O3-UHMMPE composites are characterized by the mild fatigue wear.