Shape Memory Alloys

The shape memory alloy of the positioned
stent-like member
Fernando Suárez
Aditya Kumar
Soham Anjaria
Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010

2
Outline
• Introduction
• Definition of stent
• Requirements in stent’s design
• Materials used in stents
• Form of stents
• Geometry of stents

Introduction 3

4
Introduction
Biomaterials science
“ The study and knowledge of the interactions
between living and non-living materials “
Biomaterial
“ A material intended to interface with biological
systems to evaluate, treat, augment or replace
any tissue, organ or function of the body ”

5
Introduction
Biocompatibility
“ The ability of a material to perform with an appropiate
host response in a sepecific application ”
• Host reactions to the material
• Enviroment’s effects on the material

(degradation of the material)

6
Introduction
Groups of materials used for implantations

Materials Advantages Disadvantages Applications
Polymers Resilient, easy Not strong, deforms Sutures, blood

manufacturing with time, may vessels, hip socket,
degrade ear, nose
Metals Strong, tough May corrode, Joint replacements,

ductile dense, difficult to dental, root
make implants, bone
plates and screws
Ceramics High Brittle, not resilient, Dental and

biocompatibility weal in tension orthopedic
implantation
Composites Strong, tailor-made Difficult to make Bone cement,

dental resin

7
Introduction
Shape memory alloys (SMA’s)
• 1-Way memory effect

• 2-Way memory effect
• Superelastic effect
(isothermal phase)

8
Introduction
“One-way” shape memory effect

9
Introduction
Superelastic effect

10
Stents
Definition of Stent

11
Requirements in stent design

• Biological requirements
• Material requirements

12
Stents requirements
Biological requirements
• Acceptance of the material
• Pharmacological acceptability
• Chemically inert and stable
• Mechanical strength
• Fatigue life
• Weight and density
• Radiopacity

13
Stents requirements
Material requirements
• Low profile
• Reliable delivery system
• Trackability
• Elasticity
• Flexibility
• Uniform radial strength
• Corrosion resistance
• Availability for various lesions

14
The Ideal Stent Material
General requirements:
– Corrosion resistant
– Vascular compatible
– Fatigue resistant
– Visible using X-ray and MRI (density of material)
Considerations specific to either balloon expandable

or self-expanding stents must also be made

15
Material requirements for balloon expandable stents
• High elastic modulus
– minimum recoil
• High tensile properties after expansion

– Radial strength with minimal material volume
• Low yield strength

– to make it deformable at manageable balloon pressures
• Steep strain hardening rate

– Rise in strength during expansion
• High ductility
– Needed to withstand deformation during expansion
16
Compromise in material selection
• Higher tensile strength materials typically have higher yield

strengths
• Higher tensile strength increasing radial strength

Higher yield strength undesired recoil
• Similarly, small grain size favors fatigue resistance, but usually

raises the yield strength and hence the amount of recoil.
 Require careful compromise

17
Self-expanding stents
• manufactured in the expanded

shape, then compressed and
constrained in a delivery
system.
• Upon release from the delivery

system they self-expand
(spring back) to the preset
diameter.

18
Materials for Self expanding stents
• Ideally, the material should have a low elastic modulus and a

high yield stress for large elastic strains.
• The shape memory effect of Nitinol can be used.
• Large strains can be achieved either superelastically or

through the thermal memory of the material.

19
Relevant Properties to Compare
Density  radiopacity as the denser material typically
improves visibility
The elastic modulus  radial strength, the resistance to

buckling, and recoil.
Ultimate tensile strength (UTS) & 0.2% yield strength 

mechanical strength of the material.
Break elongation  ductility.
The ratio of yield strength to elastic modulus the elastic

range of the materials, which affects acute recoil and radial
strength.

20
Stainless Steel
• most stents are built of stainless steel, the least-expensive

stent material available,
• not fully compatible with the human body and a weak
radiopacity
• 316L stainless steel is a reference for successful stent
applications.

21
Cobalt Alloys
• L605 may show the best result.
• L605 shows far better result than 316L

22
Other Metals and Alloys

23
Nitinol for self-expanding stents
• Nitinol (55% nickel and 45% titanium, sometimes called NiTi) - highly
biocompatible, decreases the rate of corrosion, very flexible and excellent
shape memory (when heated to a certain temperature)

24
Nitinol for self-expanding stents
Martensitic nitinol - long and low initial stress/strain plateau and

following a very steep work hardening curve.
- the shape memory effect or regular balloon expandable stent
Superelastic nitinol - remarkable recovery.
- use for slotted tube self expanding stents
Cold worked nitinol - excellent Hookian-like elasticity, permitting
large recovery of strains, quite high UTS, with a similar ductility to
superelastic nitinol, and exceptionally temperature independent
properties
- for some creative designs.

25
Alternative Materials
• Polymers (biodegradable, bioabsorbable, or bioerodible) - only as

short term.
• For example, biodegradable materials can form an effective stent

coating because they can be mixed with an antirestinotic drug and
will degrade within a few weeks, thus releasing the drug into the
surrounding tissue and reducing the risk of restenosis.
• Shape-memory polymers can be used to produce a device that will

transition from a temporary state to a different permanent state
through the inducement of a stimulus of heat or cold.

26
Form of Stents
• Sheet
Gianturco-Roubin stent (Cook GRII)
Formed from stainless steel sheet, featuring an

axial backbone

27
Form of Stents
• Wire (round or flat)
SX & BX Stents
SX stent fabricated from cobalt alloy wire

28
Geometry of Stents
Good designs depend on mainly two points:

Radial strength
The external pressure that a stent can withstand without a 'clinical significal
damage'

Flexibility
The stent ability to bend in order to accommodate vessel turns or angles during
delivery is flexibilty

29
Geometry of Stents
• Coil geometry
Good flexibility but limited strength
Fabricated from Nitinol ribbon
• Helical spiral geometry

Good flexibility but lack of longitudinal support
Cross flex – fabricated from stainless steel wire

30
Geometry of Stents

Woven geometry
Strength depnds on axial fixation of ends

Individual ring
'Z' shaped structure used to support grafts

31
Geometry of Stents

Sequential ring
Struts – series of 'Z' shaped expandable elements
70% of commercial stents availble in the market
Mainly two types:

Closed cell

Flex connectors

Non-flex connectors

Combined flex/non-fles connectors

32
Geometry of Stents

Open cell

Periodic Peak-Peak connection

Flex connection

Non-flex connection

Peak valley connection

Mid strut-mid strut connection

33
Coating
• To increase biocompability
• To reduce thrombogenic risk after the deployment of
a stent
• To reduce platelet activation and interaction during
the acute phase of stent re-endotheliazation

34
Radio opacity enhancements

To improve X ray visibility, markers are added to the
stent struts
Drug Eluting Stents(DES)

To decrease coronary restenosis rates

35
CONCLUSION
In summary, in this paper we have come with classification of
stents, different material available for stents, geometries of stents and
recent development of stents. Due to unique properties of Shape
Memory Alloys, they are used to make SX stents. SX stents are more
benefitial for human beings in many aspects. In these days, stents
made up of SMAs are used widely against various severe diseases
from which any disease can lead human life to death.

Shape Memory Alloys

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The shape memory alloy of the positioned

Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010

Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010

Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010

Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010

• Host reactions to the material

• Enviroment’s effects on the material

Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010

Groups of materials used for implantations

Polymers Resilient, easy Not strong, deforms Sutures, blood

Metals Strong, tough May corrode, Joint replacements,

Ceramics High Brittle, not resilient, Dental and

Composites Strong, tailor-made Difficult to make Bone cement,

Materials Science & Engineering Winter Term 2009-2010