Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene wear resistance

Enhancing the wear resistance of polymers (e.g., ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene-UHMWPE-used for in vivo implants, such as artificial hip joints). ... 

G. Deamaley and J. Lankford, Jr., Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene components treated to resist shearing and frictional wear, US Patent 6171343, assigned to Southwest Research Institute (San Antonio, TX), January 9, 2001. 

McKellop, H. Shen, F.W. Lu, B. Salovey, R. Campbell, P. The effect of sterilization method and other modifications on the wear resistance of acetabular cups of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. A hip simulator study. J. Bone and Joint Surgery 2000, 82 (12), 1708-1725. 

The blood bag case study illustrates the use of polymeric film as a flexible container. It considers the permeability of polymers, plus processes for fabricating plastics film. Plasticised PVC has dominated the market for years, but there could be a changeover to flexible polyolefin films. The case study on replacement joints for implanting in the body illustrates wear and the effects of wear debris. Research continues on improving the wear resistance of the ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and mitigating the effects of sterilisation on the implant properties. 

Another version of PE, the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene is used as a specialty plastic (in artificial hip, knee and shoulder joints), mainly due to its exceptional impact strength, low wear, good stress-crack resistance, durability, and excellent energy absorption characteristics. 

McKellop H., F.W Shen, B. Lu, et al. 1999. Development of an extremely wear-resistant ultra high molecular weight polyethylene for total hip replacements. J Orthop Res 17 157-167. 

Liu and co-workers [16] investigated the wear behaviour of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) polymer. They concluded that the applied load is the main parameter and the wear resistance improvement of filler reinforced UHMWPE was attributed to the combination of hard particles, which prevent the formation of deep, wide and continuous furrows. Bijwe and co-workers [17] and Xu and Mellor [18] tested polyamide 6 (PA), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and their various composites in abrasive wear under dry and multi-pass conditions against SiC paper on a pin-on-disc tribometer. They concluded that the polymers without fillers had better abrasive wear resistance than their composites. 

S.A. Atwood, D.W. Van Citters, E.W. Patten, J. Fm-manski, M.D. Ries, LA. Pruitt. Tradeoffs amongst fatigue, wear, and oxidation resistance of cross-linked ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials 4(7), 1033-1045 October (2011). 

Tetik, R. D., Galante, J. O., and Rostoker, W. (1974), A wear-resistant material for total joint replacement Tissue biocompatibility of an ultra-high-molecular-weight (UHMW) polyethylene-graphite composite, J. Biomed. Mater. Res. 8(5) 231-250. 

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