Effect of Additional Zirconia on Fracture Mechanics of Bioactive Glass-ceramics Using Digital Image Correlation

Bioactive glass-ceramic is used as a replacement material for bone tissue due to its compatibility, bioactivity, and the ability to form a crystallized hydroxyapatite layer, which is similar in composition and structure to the inorganic component of the bone mineral phase. In this paper, bioglass-ceramic was toughened using zirconia to improve its mechanical behaviour (i.e. crack opening dsplacement and fracture toughness). The fracture toughness of the bioactive glass cerami/zirconia composite was measured using three-point bending technique. Digital Image Correlation (DIC) technique was utilized for visualized the crack initiation and calculation the crack opening displacement (COD) at the tip and mouth of the crack and measuring of the crack propagation of the bioactive glass cerami/zirconia composite. The results indicated that the incorporation of the zirconia particles improved the measured fracture toughness of the BGC/ZrO2 composite. The toughness of composite bioceramics is enhanced due to crack branching and crack deflection due to the presence of zirconia particles.