Investigation of carbon nanotube reinforced composites in biomechanical applications

Date

2024-8

Author

Büyüktaş, Kaan

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Titanium alloy plates, screws, and implants of various designs are generally used today for the treatment of orthopedic bone fractures or severe bone cracks that occur as a result of injuries, accidents, and certain surgeries. Based on materials science and solid mechanics knowledge, different composite materials and design concepts can be studied by employing finite element analysis. The mechanical and geometric properties of these designs can be assessed computationally in an efficient manner through various simulations using variable settings. This master’s thesis study aims to employ finite element analysis for examining the geometric and mechanical properties of carbon nanotube reinforced composites in biomechanical applications such as fixture designs for femur and radius bones with transverse fractures. In addition, within the context of this research, sustainability and optimization of the designs are explored targeting reduced carbon footprints for these advanced materials when compared to metal composite applications. The results show that carbon nanotube reinforcement in Ti-6al-4v alloy increases Young's modulus by up to 54% while decreasing the fixture design weight by up to 8% when compared to conventional Ti-6al-4v alloy. Also, reinforcement in polyether ether ketone increases Young's modulus by up to 320% while decreasing the design weight by up to 40% when compared to conventional Ti-6al-4v alloy. All the designs tested for femur and radius bones are acceptable from a biomechanical point of view with factors of safety higher than 1.5, indicating resilience against plastic deformation.

Subject Keywords

Carbon nanotube reinforced composites, Multiscale finite element modeling, Finite element analysis, Biomechanical design, Femur fixture, Radius fixture

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/111575

Collections

Northern Cyprus Campus, Thesis