Characterization of Ti-27Nb-13Zr Alloy Produced by Powder Metallurgy

Titanium alloy are widely used in biomedical applications due to their excellent properties such as high strength, good corrosion resistance and excellent biocompatibility. Researches are being developed with elements such as Nb and Zr that reach all criterions for excellent biocompatibility and provide titanium alloys with Young’s modulus close to human bone. The aim of this work was to produce Ti-27Nb-13Zr alloy with different milling times by powder metallurgy process. The mixtures were performed by high energy milling and sintering in high vacuum furnace with temperature of 1300 °C / 3 h. The microstructures of samples were analyzed by SEM and XRD, while the mechanical behavior was evaluated by elastic modulus and Vickers hardness test. The diffraction results of sintering treatment indicate that the alloys are composed of α and β phases. Images obtained by SEM indicate the formation of equiaxial structures. Vickers hardness measurements from sintered samples with 1300 °C / 3 h indicate mean values around 413, 473 and 609 HV for 2, 6 and 10 hours of milling, respectively. The values of elastic modulus enable use the alloy as biomaterial.