Aims: This course aims to give an appreciation of a range of topics that relate to the structure and properties of natural materials and the way in which natural and synthetic materials are linked at the interface between medicine and engineering.
Learning Outcomes:
On completion of this unit the student should demonstrate an understanding of the structure and properties of biological tissues, have knowledge of a range of materials that can be used to replace both soft and hard tissues of the body and be aware of the extent and the limitations of replacement components in terms of design and materials. The student will have developed the skills necessary to work as part of a small team in preparing a group presentation and to produce a substantial individual report in a selected area of biomedical materials.
Skills:
Facilitated intellectual and professional key skills.
Content:
1. Biological materials The importance of the structure/properties relationship in 'engineering' materials. Mechanical properties - units and definitions. Stress, strain, Young's modulus, density, specific mechanical properties, toughness, elastic and viscoelastic deformation, damping. The principal hard and soft tissues in the body and their main anatomical functions: bone, teeth, cartilage, tendons & ligaments, skin, arterial wall, cervical tissue. Chemical and physical compositions: main chemical constituents - hydroxyapatite, dentine and enamel, aminoacids and mucopolysaccharides, proteoglycans (proteins), collagen, elastin. Crystalline and amorphous structures, polymers and composites. Performance of natural materials under stress: brittleness and toughness, yielding (plastic behaviour), fatigue, creep (viscoelasticity), rubbery behaviour, damping. Efficiency of bone structures. Mechanical response of hard and soft tissues in terms of their structures.
2. Prosthetics Use of biomaterials for replacement and repair of hard and soft tissues. Functional considerations - forces on joints, cyclic loading, wear and tear, body environment Materials used for implant purposes - metals, alloys, ceramics, polymers, composites, coatings. Applications in the fields of orthopaedics, cardiovascular, dental, ocular, drug delivery and wound healing Evaluation of biomaterials - biocompatibility testing, corrosion, wear, deterioration.
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