As the lightest metal structural material, magnesium and its alloys have the characteristics of low density, high specific strength and good biocompatibility, which gives magnesium alloys broad application prospects in fields of biomedicine, transportation, and aerospace. Laser selective melting technology has the advantages of manufacturing complex structural parts, high precision and high degree of freedom. However, due to some disadvantages of magnesium alloy, such as low boiling point and high vapor pressure, the application of it in laser selective melting was relatively undeveloped compared with other alloys. In this paper, the fabrication, microstructure, mechanical performance and corrosion resistance property of magnesium alloys were summarized, and the potential applications and the development direction of selective laser melting magnesium alloys in the future are prospected.

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Newly developed Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb has fascinating mechanical properties to be used as a biomedical material. However, there is still a lack of investigation focusing on the corrosion behavior of Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb. In this work, the microstructure and corrosion behavior of as-cast Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb was investigated by optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and electrochemical measurements. Hank’s solution was used as the electrolyte. A classical as-cast Ti–6Al–4V was used as reference. The results showed that Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb has a higher corrosion potential and a lower corrosion current density compared with Ti–6Al–4V, indicating better corrosion resistance. However, after applying anodic potentials, Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb shows larger passivation current density in both potentiodynamic polarization and potentiostatic polarization tests. This is because more alloying elements contained in Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb trigger the production of a larger number of oxygen vacancies, resulting in a higher flux of oxygen vacancy. This finding illustrates that the passive film on Ti–10Mo–6Zr–4Sn–3Nb is less protective compared with that on Ti–6Al–4V when applying an anodic potential in their passivation range.

The microstructural evolution and tensile performance of a meta-stable β-type biomedical Ti−10Mo−6Zr−4Sn−3Nb (Ti-B12) alloy subjected to one-stage aging (OSA) and two-stage aging (TSA) are investigated in this work. The OSA treatment is performed at 510°C for 8 h. The TSA treatments are composed of low-temperature aging and high-temperature aging. In the first step, low-temperature aging is conducted at 325°C for 2 h. In the second step, the aging temperature is the same as that in the OSA. The result of the microstructure evolution shows that the precipitated secondary phase after aging is mainly influenced by the process of phase transition. There is a marked difference in the microstructure of the Ti-B12 alloy subjected to the OSA and TSA treatments. The needle-shaped α phases are precipitated in the parent β phase after the OSA treatment. Conversely, the short shuttle-like α phases precipitated after the TSA treatment are formed in the β matrix with the aid of the role of the isothermal ω transitional phase-assisted phase transition. The electron backscattered diffraction results indicate that the crystallographic orientation relationship of the α phases precipitated during the TSA treatment is basically analogous to those in the OSA treatment. The relatively higher tensile strength of 1,275 MPa is achieved by strengthening the effect of the short shuttle-like α precipitation with a size of 0.123 μm in length during the TSA treatment, associating with a suitable elongation of 12% at room temperature simultaneously. The fracture surfaces of the samples after the OSA and TSA treatments indicate that preventing the coarsening of the α layers in the grain boundaries is favorable for the enhancement of strength of Ti-B12 at room temperature. MTT test was carried out to evaluate the acute cytotoxicity and biocompatibility of the implanted material using L929 cells. The relative proliferation rates of cytotoxicity levels 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 are ≥100, 80–99, 50–79, 30–49, and 0–29%, respectively. The cytotoxicity of the Ti-B12 alloy is slightly better than that of the Ti−6Al−4V alloy, which can meet the requirements of medical materials for biomedical materials.

There is limited research on metastable pitting corrosion in an acidic environment, and acid is a major challenge for material corrosion. Therefore, this work investigated the metastable pitting corrosion of laser powder bed fusion (LPBF)-produced Ti–6Al–4V, in Hank’s solution, at different pH values (pH = 3, 5, and 7). This work investigated the effect of acid on the characteristics of passive films, as well as the change in metastable pitting behavior. Based on the results of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), the passive film will be inhibited and dissolved under the influence of H⁺. The higher the concentration of H⁺, the thinner the passive film. Potentiodynamic polarization tests reveal that LPBFed Ti–6Al–4V in Hank’s solution, at pH 3, has more obvious metastable pitting corrosion. This is because the higher the H⁺ concentration, the more Cl^- is adsorbed on the surface of the passive film, which is prone to generate soluble chlorides by competitive adsorption with oxygen atoms and thus develop into metastable pitting corrosion.

Introduction: Ti6Al4V titanium alloy is widely used in producing orthopedic and maxillofacial implants, but drawbacks include high elastic modulus, poor osseointegration performance, and toxic elements. A new medical titanium alloy material with better comprehensive performance is urgently needed in the clinic.Methods: Ti10Mo6Zr4Sn3Nb titanium alloy (referred to as Ti-B12) is a unique medical ß titanium alloy material developed by us. The mechanical properties of Ti-B12 depict that it has advantages, such as high strength, low elastic modulus, and fatigue resistance. In our study, the biocompatibility and osseointegration properties of Ti-B12 titanium alloy are further studied to provide theoretical guidance for its clinical transformation.Results and Discussion: The titanium alloy Ti-B12 displays no significant effect on MC3T3-E1 cell morphology, proliferation, or apoptosis in vitro. Neither Ti-B12 titanium alloy nor Ti6Al4V titanium alloy depicts a significant difference (p > 0.05); Ti-B12 material extract injected into the abdominal cavity of mice does not cause acute systemic toxicity. The skin irritation test and intradermal irritation test reveal that Ti-B12 does not cause skin allergic reactions in rabbits. Compared to Ti6Al4V, Ti-B12 titanium alloy material has more advantages in promoting osteoblast adhesion and ALP secretion (p < 0.05). Although there is no significant difference in OCN and Runx2 gene expression between the three groups on the 7th and 14th days of differentiation induction (p > 0.05), the expression of Ti-B12 group is higher than that of Ti6Al4V group and blank control group. Furthermore, the rabbit in vivo test present that 3 months after the material is implanted in the lateral epicondyle of the rabbit femur, the Ti-B12 material fuses with the surrounding bone without connective tissue wrapping. This study confirms that the new β-titanium alloy Ti-B12 not only has low toxicity and does not cause rejection reaction but also has better osseointegration performance than the traditional titanium alloy Ti6Al4V. Therefore, Ti-B12 material is expected to be further promoted in clinical practice.