Fretting properties of biodegradable Mg-Nd-Zn-Zr alloy in air and in Hank’s solution

Fretting is a significant cause for the failure of orthopedic implants. Currently, since magnesium and its alloys have been developed as promising biodegradable implant materials, the fretting behavior of the Mg alloys is of great research significance. In this study, a Mg-Nd-Zn-Zr alloy (hereafter, denoted as JDBM alloy) was selected as experimental material, and its fretting behaviors were evaluated under 5 N, 10 N and 20 N normal loads with a displacement of 200 μm under the frequency of 10 Hz at 37 °C in air and in Hank’s solution, respectively. The results indicated that while the friction coefficient decreased with the increment of the normal load, the wear volume of the alloy increased with the increment of the normal load both in air and in Hank’s solution. Both the friction coefficients and the wear volume of the fretting in Hank’s solution were much lower than those in air environment. The evolution trend of friction coefficients with time had different performance in air environment and the Hank’s solution group. Although oxidation occurred during the fretting tests in Hank’s solution, the damage of JDBM alloy was still reduced due to the lubrication effects of Hank’s solution. Moreover, the addition of Fetal bovine serum (FBS) could act as lubrication and result in the reduction of the fretting damage.