Novel design of low modulus high strength zirconia scaffolds for biomedical applications

This study intends to develop a novel zirconia scaffold design with a significantly lower Young's Modulus than zirconia bulk material (210 GPa) aiming to match this elastic property with that of the host bone, for application as endosseous implants. This scaffold with a complex interconnected structure can allow bone ingrowth, vascularization and provide a good initial stability. This novel thin-walled zirconia scaffold was manufactured by green machining and afterwards furnace sintered. The obtained YM of this zirconia scaffold was found significantly lower than zirconia bulk material due a less stiff geometry with small (walls and floors) dimensions. Insertion replication tests were performed for evaluating the fixation at the initial moment of implantation, being experimentally verified a high static initial coefficient of friction. The capillarity of these scaffolds was also assessed, revealing a very high rising speed of water inside these structures. This study proved that this novel ceramic scaffold design can be fabricated for several dimensions for obtaining desired elastic properties. The proposed fabrication strategy allows the fabrication of thin-walled structures unachievable by conventional machining.