[Improve wear resistance of UHMWPE by O+ ion implanted]

Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) was implanted with 450 keV and 100 keV O+ ions at dosage of 1 x 10(15)/cm2, 5 x 10(15)/cm2, 3 x 10(14)/cm2, respectively. Its wear behaviors were studied under dry friction condition and lubrication by means of distilled water using a pin-on-disk tribometer with a Si3N4 ceramic ball as a counterface. The wear surfaces were examined with SEM. The experimental results showed that the wear rate of implanted UHMWPE is lower than that of un-implanted UHMWPE under both dry and distilled friction conditions, especially for 450 keV energy and 5 x 10(15)/cm2 dose implantation. The friction coefficient of O+ ions implanted UHMWPE is higher than that of un-implanted UHMWPE under both dry and distilled friction conditions. The adhesive, plow and plastic deformation are the wearing mechanism for un-implanted UHMWPE; the fatigue and abrasive wear are that for implanted UHMWPE.