Novel zinc alloys for biodegradable surgical staples

Table 1 Chemical compositions of binary Zn alloys

Alloy designation	Element (wt.%)
	Mg	Ca	Ti	Mn	Cu	Zn
Zn	-	-	-	-	-	Bal.
Zn–0.3Mg	0.30	-	-	-	-	Bal.
Zn–1.0Mg	1.00	-	-	-	-	Bal.
Zn–3.0Mg	2.98	-	-	-	-	Bal.
Zn–0.1Ca	-	0.09	-	-	-	Bal.
Zn–0.5Ca	-	0.43	-	-	-	Bal.
Zn–0.1Ti	-	-	0.10	-	-	Bal.
Zn–0.5Ti	-	-	0.47	-	-	Bal.
Zn–0.5Mn	-	-	-	0.43	-	Bal.
Zn–1.0Mn	-	-	-	0.97	-	Bal.
Zn–0.1Cu	-	-	-	-	0.10	Bal.
Zn–1.0Cu	-	-	-	-	1.01	Bal.
Zn–3.0Cu	-	-	-	-	2.89	Bal.
Zn–6.0Cu	-	-	-	-	5.95	Bal.

Bal.: Balance.

Table 2 Ninety-degree bending test of binary Zn alloy sheets

	Visual appearance
Zn	Wrinkles
Zn–0.3Mg	Broken
Zn–1.0Mg	Broken
Zn–3.0Mg	-
Zn–0.1Ca	Smooth
Zn–0.5Ca	Small cracks
Zn–0.1Ti	Small wrinkles
Zn–0.5Ti	Wrinkles
Zn–0.5Mn	Smooth
Zn–1.0Mn	Smooth
Zn–0.1Cu	Small wrinkles
Zn–1.0Cu	Smooth
Zn–3.0Cu	Large cracks
Zn–6.0Cu	Large cracks

Table 3 Chemical composition of Zn alloys for staples (wt.%)

	Ti	Mn	Cu	Zn
Zn–1.0Cu–0.2Mn–0.1Ti	0.10	0.20	1.01	Bal.
Zn–1.0Mn–0.1Ti	0.10	1.00	-	Bal.
Zn–1.0Cu–0.1Ti	0.09	-	1.02	Bal.

Bal.: Balance.

Table 4 Mechanical properties of Zn alloy wires

	UTS (MPa)	0.2% YS (MPa)	EL (%)
Zn alloy 1 (Zn–1.0Cu–0.2Mn–0.1Ti)	212	196	19
Zn alloy 2 (Zn–1Mn–0.1Ti)	198	180	7
Zn alloy 3 (Zn–1Cu–0.1Ti)	200	177	21

UTS: Ultimate tensile strength; YS: Yield strength; EL: Elongation.