Fabrication of bioactive titanium with controlled porous structure and cell culture in vitro

One of the direct metal forming techniques, electron beam melting (EBM) process, was used to fabricate Ti6Al4V implants with controllable porous structure. The micro-structural pore characterization, porosity and mechanical properties of the fabricated implants were investigated. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) observation shows that the porous structure of fabricated samples coincide with the designed architecture. It is demonstrated that EBM process can provide accurate control over the internal pore architectures of the implant. The compressive strength of the implant with porosity of 60.1% is 163 MPa. The Young's modulus is 14 GPa, which is similar to that of cortical bone. The surface modification by improved alkali-heat treatment induces apatite formation in simulated body fluid (SBF). In vitro cell culture experiment results reveal that osteoblasts will spread and proliferate on the surface of modified specimens over a culture time of 7 d.