This thesis was submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Depending on an excellent combination of high mechanical property and fracture
toughness, metallic biomaterials have been widely accepted for clinical application of
bone fixation. However, some prominent disadvantages such as stress shielding effect
due to their high elastic modulus, poisonous ions released by corrosion or mechanical
wear [Puleo and Huh, 1995] definitely restrict their effective performance in-service. In addition, patients also have to bear the pain resulted from second surgery for removing implants. Although bio-degradable polymers and ceramics seem to solve the tough problem as promising substitutes, the low mechanical property and rapid corrosion rate make them fail to qualify against the bear-loading requirement in body. Therefore, we desperately look for a non-toxic suitable material for medical
application which possesses appropriate mechanical properties, and favourable
corrosion resistance
