Effect of heat treatment and Sn content on superelasticity in biocompatible TiNbSn alloys

Martensitic transformation and tensile properties of 4 to 5 mol%Sn-doped Ti-16 mol%Nb alloys consisting of biocompatible elements were investigated to provide superelasticity for biomedical applications as a function of heat treatment and Sn content. Martensitic transformation (bcc to orthorhombic structure) is accelerated at such quenching conditions that the bcc parent phase is slightly decomposed. Martensitic transformation temperature decreases rapidly with increasing Sn content. In-situ optical microscopic observation on cooling and heating indicates that the martensite is thermoelastic, corresponding to small temperature hysteresis between the martensitic and the reverse transformations, which is determined by differential scanning calorimetry. By controlling the heat treatment condition and Sn content, large superelastic strain is obtained at room temperature.