Manufacturing Medical Devices from Exotic Materials via Green Technology

Generating features in standard alloys can be challenging, even more so when the demand is for fine features in superalloys or shape-memory materials. These materials have the improved strength-to-weight ratios, increased wear resistance, and light weight needed for medical applications, but they are difficult to machine or grind conventionally. A new development in electrochemical machining, the molecular decomposition process (MDP), negates these obstacles in the production of medical implants and instruments by causing no thermal or mechanical stresses. Superior surface finish and repeatable dimensional results are achieved, with no need for secondary deburring with its environmental impact from additional abrasives and electrolytic fluids.