摘要

A dental ridge augmentation membrane (RAM) of a Ti-6Al-4V alloy by a superplastic forming (SPF) technique is simulated and studied using finite element analysis. The simulations are dominated by a number of factors, which include target stress, strain rate, and material properties; for example, the initial grain size. The specially designed Superflag finite element program was used to provide information on thinning process, grain size, flow stress distribution, and contact accuracy between the alloy sheet and the ceramic die. The effect of different thickness sheets and target stresses has been analyzed and the simulation results showed that optimum superplastic forming of the prosthesis can be obtained by proper selection of target stress and thickness of the alloy. With the efficient simulation and production of the RAM, applications using the SPF technique can be broadened for other similar medical devices.