Open Access Conference Proceedings

The article concerns the experimental determination of a suitable method of heat treatment of the shank of a hip arthroplasty, that is, an artificial replacement of the femoral head with the neck, to obtain the mechanical properties required by the customer. The hip replacement shank is manufactured from Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy. As the customer's requirements for the mechanical properties of the hip replacement shank were not met after the hardening process, in this case quenching in water and subsequent tempering, repeated annealing was experimented in a Realistic 2 continuous oven. After each alternative annealing of the hip replacement shank, three circular cross-sectional test bars were made, and then the mechanical properties of the material were evaluated by tensile testing. The tests carried out show that after the first annealing, the mechanical properties of the material and its microstructure may not be satisfactory and, therefore, it is advisable to repeat the annealing. In the present case of a suitable heat treatment method for the shank of a hip arthroplasty, the customer's requirements for its mechanical properties and its microstructure after the third annealing were met.

Keywords: Heat treatment, titanium alloy, endoprosthesis shank, annealing

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