Effect Of Surface Mechanical Attrition Treatment On The Microstructure Of Cobalt-Chromium-Molybdenum Biomedical Alloy

This research work describes the impact of the surface mechanical attrition treatment (SMAT) on the microstructure of cobalt-chromium-molybdenum (CoCrMo), a biomedical alloy commonly used for orthopedic applications. This surface treatment induces crystalline phases transformations characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED). The corresponding structural changes are observed from cross-section images obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that the SMAT process induces the martensitic transformation of the CoCrMo alloy (from gamma-fcc phase to epsilon-hcp phase) related to an important grain refinement due to twinning and sliding.