Wood as a model material for medical biomaterials. In vivo and in vitro studies with bone and Betula pubescens Ehrh

Novel biomaterials are needed to fill the demand of tailored bone substitutes required by an ever‐expanding array of surgical procedures and techniques. Wood, a natural fiber composite, modified with heat treatment to alter its composition, may provide a novel approach to the further development of hierarchically structured biomaterials. The suitability of wood as a model biomaterial as well as the effects of heat treatment on the osteoconductivity of wood was studied by placing untreated and heat‐treated (at 220 C , 200 degrees and 140 degrees for 2 h) birch implants (size 4 x 7mm) into drill cavities in the distal femur of rabbits. The follow‐up period was 4, 8 and 20 weeks in all in vivo experiments. The flexural properties of wood as well as dimensional changes and hydroxyl apatite formation on the surface of wood (untreated, 140 degrees C and 200 degrees C heat‐treated wood) were tested using 3‐point bending and compression tests and immersion in simulated body fluid. The effect of premeasurement grinding and the effect of heat treatment on the surface roughness and contour of wood were tested with contact stylus and non‐contact profilometry. The effects of heat treatment of wood on its interactions with biological fluids was assessed using two different test media and real human blood in liquid penetration tests. The results of the in vivo experiments showed implanted wood to be well tolerated, with no implants rejected due to foreign body reactions. Heat treatment had significant effects on the biocompatibility of wood, allowing host bone to grow into tight contact with the implant, with occasional bone ingrowth into the channels of the wood implant. The results of the liquid immersion experiments showed hydroxyl apatite formation only in the most extensively heat‐treated wood specimens, which supported the results of the in vivo experiments. Parallel conclusions could be drawn based on the results of the liquid penetration test where human blood had the most favorable interaction with the most extensively heat‐treated wood of the compared materials (untreated, 140 degrees C and 200 degrees C heat‐treated wood). The increasing biocompatibility was inferred to result mainly from changes in the chemical composition of wood induced by the heat treatment, namely the altered arrangement and concentrations of functional chemical groups. However, the influence of microscopic changes in the cell walls, surface roughness and contour cannot be totally excluded. The heat treatment was hypothesized to produce a functional change in the liquid distribution within wood, which could have biological relevance. It was concluded that the highly evolved hierarchical anatomy of wood could yield information for the future development of bulk bone substitutes according to the ideology of bioinspiration. Furthermore, the results of the biomechanical tests established that heat treatment alters various biologically relevant mechanical properties of wood, thus expanding the possibilities of wood as a model material, which could include e.g. scaffold applications, bulk bone applications and serving as a tool for both mechanical testing and for further development of synthetic fiber reinforced composites.

Lujien hitsattavien terästen käyttäytyminen -60 °C:ssa

Opinnäytetyö on osa Arctic Materials Technologies Development -projektia, jonka tavoitteena on kehittää perusteita arktisten alueiden sovelluksiin suunnittelun ja valmistuksen kannalta. Arktisella alueella sijaitsee useita potentiaalisia öljy- ja maakaasuesiintymiä, joiden hyödyn-täminen tulee vuosi vuodelta kannattavammaksi ilmaston lämpenemisestä johtuvan merijään heikkenemisen vuoksi. Alin suunnittelulämpötila arktisilla alueilla on -60 °C, mikä aiheuttaa haasteita sekä materiaalinvalinnalle että hitsaukselle. Ferriittisillä teräksillä esiintyy lämpötilasta riippuvaa sitkeyden vaihtelua, jota kutsutaan transi-tiokäyttäytymiseksi. Lämpötilan laskiessa teräksen iskusitkeys sekä murtumissitkeys laske-vat. Arktisissa sovelluskohteissa käytetään yleisesti niukkaseosteisia, mikroseostettuja hie-noraeteräksiä, joille on ominaista erinomaiset sitkeys-, lujuus- sekä hitsattavuusominaisuudet vaativissakin olosuhteissa. Lujat termomekaanisesti valssatut ja nuorrutetut hienoraeteräkset kattavat myötölujuusluokat 355…700 MPa. Tutkimuksissa on saatu vaihtelevia tuloksia ma-teriaalien isku- ja murtumissitkeydestä -60 °C:ssa. Erityisesti sitkeysominaisuudet hitsiaineen ja muutosvyöhykkeen alueiden välillä ovat vaihtelevia. Pienemmällä lämmöntuonnilla ja seostetuilla lisäaineilla saavutetaan kuitenkin pääsääntöisesti parempia sitkeysarvoja. Asiku-laarinen ferriitti sekä alabainiitti ovat toivottavia mikrorakenteita liitoksessa, niiden pienen raekoon johdosta.

Characteristics of urban heat island (UHI) in a high latitude coastal city - a case study of Turku, SW Finland

The term urban heat island (UHI) refers to the common situation in which the city is warmer than its rural surroundings. In this dissertation, the local climate, and especially the UHI, of the coastal city of Turku (182,000 inh.), SW Finland, was studied in different spatial and temporal scales. The crucial aim was to sort out the urban, topographical and water body impact on temperatures at different seasons and times of the day. In addition, the impact of weather on spatiotemporal temperature differences was studied. The relative importance of environmental factors was estimated with different modelling approaches and a large number of explanatory variables with various spatial scales. The city centre is the warmest place in the Turku area. Temperature excess relative to the coldest sites, i.e. rural areas about 10 kilometers to the NE from the centre, is on average 2 °C. Occasionally, the UHI intensity can be even 10 °C. The UHI does not prevail continuously in the Turku area, but occasionally the city centre can be colder than its surroundings. Then the term urban cool island or urban cold island (UCI) is used. The UCI is most common in daytime in spring and in summer, whereas during winter the UHI prevails throughout the day. On average, the spatial temperature differences are largest in summer, whereas the single extreme values are often observed in winter. The seasonally varying sea temperature causes the shift of relatively warm areas towards the coast in autumn and inland in spring. In the long term, urban land use was concluded to be the most important factor causing spatial temperature differences in the Turku area. The impact was mainly a warming one. The impact of water bodies was emphasised in spring and autumn, when the water temperature was relatively cold and warm, respectively. The impact of topography was on average the weakest, and was seen mainly in proneness of relatively low-lying places for cold air drainage during night-time. During inversions, however, the impact of topography was emphasised, occasionally outperforming those of urban land use and water bodies.