Development of diamond prostheses and of nanostructured diamantiferous materials

• Grant number: 03/10101-7
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• Start date: September 01, 2004
• End date: December 31, 2008
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Biomedical Engineering - Bioengineering
• Principal Investigator: Vitor Baranauskas
• Grantee: Vitor Baranauskas
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia Elétrica e de Computação (FEEC). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Pesquisadores principais: Maria Alice da Cruz Hofling ; William Dias Belangero

Abstract

This is an interdisciplinary Engineering, Biology and Medicine project towards the development of diamond and diamond-like materials that may be suited for future fabrication of advanced prostheses. Self-supporting tubes and wafers of diamond and diamond-like materials will be investigated in order to create an experimental model for the bio-compatibility and bio-activity analyses of these materials, that will be imp]anted in animals without a cementing or other fixation material. Attention will be given to the osteogenesis at lhe bone-diamond interface, and to the compatibility of these devices with soft tissues (muscles) and body fluids. Diamond and diamond-like materials, produced by chemical reactions of ethanol and hydrogen in the vapor phase, will be engineered to obtain several kinds of morphologies, porosities, nanostructures, doping elements and different compositions of sp²- and sp³- bonded carbons, in order to optimize the bio-activity, biochemical stability and mechanical properties. Coatings of these materials on refractory materials, such as Ti and its alloys, will also be developed and investigated. Beyond lhe specific objectives of the project from the point of view of scientific advancement, we believe that this effort may also contribute to the improvement of the quality of human life, in the near future. (AU)