Hip stem corrosion test ASTM F1875

Normative References  

ASTM F1875: Standard Practice for Fretting Corrosion Testing of Modular Implant Interfaces: Hip Femoral Head-Bore and Cone Taper Interface

Two methods are part of this standard, a quantitative analysis (method I) and a qualitative assessment (method IIa/b).

Method I is used to determine the amount of surface damage and debris generated by measurement of the production of corrosion products, therefore simulating a large number of load cycles.

For most tests, a particle analysis as well as an ion concentration analysis of the test solution will be performed after the fatigue testing.

Method IIb is a short-term electrochemical evaluation (measurement of current) to compare different designs, surface treatments and so on. Typical fretting corrosion currents are in the region of some µA. This requires extremely precise testing equipment as well as a well shielded test environment. Method IIa replaces the large counter electrode by a saturated calomel electrode. This method is currently not in common use but is gaining popularity with tendencies to introduce a reference electrode.