Preparation, microstructure and mechanical properties of porous titanium sintered by Ti fibres.

Open-cell porous Ti with a porosity ranging from 35 to 84% was successfully manufactured by sintering titanium fibres. The microstructure of the porous titanium was observed by SEM and the compressive mechanical properties were tested. By adjusting the spiral structure of the porous titanium, the pore size can be controlled in a range of 150-600 microm. With the increasing of the porosity, compressive yield strength and modulus decrease as predicated. However, high mechanical properties were still obtained at a medium porosity, e.g. the compressive yield strength and the modulus are as high as 100-200 MPa and 3.5-4.2 GPa, respectively, when the porosity is in the range of 50-70%. It was suggested that the porous titanium be strong enough to resist handing during implantation and in vivo loading. It is expected to be used as biocompatible implant, because their interconnected porous structures permit bone tissues ingrowth and the body fluids transportation.