Uniaxial Compaction‐Based Manufacturing Strategy and 3D Microstructural Evaluation of Near‐Net‐Shaped ZrO 2 ‐Toughened Al 2 O 3 Acetabular Socket

The article presents computer‐aided design approach and discusses an integrated manufacturing protocol to fabricate ZrO 2 ‐toughened Al 2 O 3 (ZTA) prototype with excellent geometrical conformity. In particular, a powder mixture of 95 wt% Al 2 O 3 –5 wt% ZrO 2 with 800 ppm MgO sinter aid is uniaxially compacted at 200 kN, followed by pre‐sintering‐machining‐final sintering. The finishing of ZTA socket to obtain submicron surface roughness ( R a  ≈ 0.01 μm) is accomplished using polymer rheological medium with silicon carbide abrasives. Summarizing, the uniqueness of uniaxial compaction‐based processing approach is established to fabricate scalable near‐net‐shaped acetabular ceramic sockets having uniform ZrO 2 distribution in 3D microstructure of ZTA, as analyzing using microcomputed tomography.