Analyzing the Mechanical Performance of Porous TPEs Under Various Operating Conditions

Synthetic polymers have developed since the early sixties and have become integral to modern society. Polymer materials have been increasingly used in the medical industry, and three-dimensional printing technology has made it possible to manufacture and develop implants and replacement parts of the human body in terms of low cost and lightweight. This work investigates how artificial intervertebral discs (IVD) can resist or adapt energy absorption when exposed to sudden forces and mechanical friction. Wear and impact test samples were fabricated using the 3D printing method made from the Thermoplastic elastomers (TPE), including PLA and PLA+, arranged in 5 groups with (100, 90, 80, 70, and 60) % filling. The PLA+ samples appeared to significantly outperform if exposed to shock forces, i.e., suddenly by (94, 93, 92, 90, and 89) %, respectively, for the filling percentage. Moreover, the PLA+ model has also been shown to behave adaptively in laboratory conditions, especially when loaded or exposed to low speeds in test wear. If the samples are loaded with overstrained loads or low speeds, then the behaviour of the friction scheme and horizontal forces is relatively stable. This means the samples respond well and give homogeneous and predictable results in these conditions. However, the samples fail when the speed and load are increased by a force of 20 N 20 min after the start of the test. In this case, the samples experienced a more significant weight loss of 0.0148 g for the porosity ratio of 30%. This suggests they fail in high friction, wear, and impact loads.