Hamdy Ibrahim¹, Alan Luo², David Dean², Rigoberto Advincula³, Mohammad Elahinia⁴; ¹University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, ²Ohio State University, ³Case Western Reserve University, ⁴University of Toledo

Mg and its alloys have recently been attractive for developing biomedical devices that can bioresorb completely after the healing of the body tissue. This can be attributed to the biodegradable nature, low density and biocompatibility of Mg alloys. While some Mg alloys are potentially strong enough for some bone implant applications, the strength, corrosion rates and biocompatibility of these alloys are not suitable for load-bearing skeletal reconstruction applications. We developed a patent-pending alloy, Mg-1.2Zn-0.5Ca-0.5Mn produced using biocompatible alloying elements, and a heat treatment process that is likely to provide the needed mechanical stability during bone healing and reliably resorb following the healing of a reconstructed skeletal segment. Our results confirmed the significant role of Zn content and age hardening temperature on the mechanical and corrosion properties of heat-treated Mg-Zn-Ca-based alloys. We also developed a composite ceramic-based coating to delay device corrosion using micro arc oxidation and sol-gel coating techniques.