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ASTM F2118 Bone Cement Fatigue Test

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ASTM F2118 is a standard test method for force - controlled constant - amplitude fatigue testing of acrylic bone cement materials. It is mainly used to evaluate the fatigue performance of acrylic bone cement commonly used in orthopedic surgeries, providing a unified testing basis for the research and development, production, and quality inspection of such materials. The following is a detailed introduction:


Core Scope and Purpose

    • Applicable Scope: This standard is specifically tailored for acrylic resin - based orthopedic bone cement, which is in line with the specifications of ASTM F451 and ISO 16402. It focuses on testing the uniaxial, constant - amplitude, and tension - compression uniform fatigue performance of the material. However, its applicability to other types of surgical cement is not guaranteed and needs to be further verified.

    • Main Purpose: It aims to characterize the fatigue performance of acrylic bone cement through standardized tests rather than directly simulating its clinical application scenarios. It can be used to compare the fatigue behavior of different bone cement formulations, as well as the impact of different mixing methods and environments (such as mixing temperature, vacuum conditions, etc.) on the fatigue performance of bone cement. Additionally, it does not specify mandatory performance indicators for bone cement, but offers a scientific testing framework.


Test Procedures and Key Parameters


Test LinkSpecific Requirements
Environmental Setup


The specimen is immersed in phosphate - buffered saline (PBS). The test chamber should be filled sufficiently to submerge the entire specimen. During the test, distilled water should be added in a timely manner to make up for the loss caused by evaporation. The temperature of the solution is controlled at 37°C, which is consistent with the human body temperature, simulating the physiological environment in which the bone cement works.

Loading Mode


A fully reversed sinusoidal cyclic tension - compression load is applied. This means the specimen alternates between tensile and compressive stresses during the test, which is closer to the alternating stress that bone cement bears in the human body during daily activities such as walking and running.

Test Approaches


There are two main test ideas. One is to conduct tests at three different stress levels to obtain the stress - cycle (S - N) curve of the bone cement, so as to comprehensively characterize its fatigue performance in a wide stress range. The other is to determine the fatigue life of the bone cement, with the general benchmark set at 5 million cycles.

Test Termination ConditionsThe test stops when either the specimen fails (such as fracture or obvious damage), or the preset number of cycles (usually 5 million cycles) is completed.


ISO 16402 Similar to ASTM F2118, this test method describes a variety of tests for evaluating the static and fatigue strength of acrylic resin-based bone cement. Constant amplitude, uniaxial, and tension-compression tests are performed to generate an S-N curve using dumbbell-shaped samples.


A four point bending fixture is placed in a liquid bath filled with Ringer's solution and maintained at 37 ° C. After quasi-static bending testing, fatigue testing is performed to generate a stress level/cycle number (S/N) curve.

ASTM F2118 Bone Cement Fatigue Test

Test Specimen Preparation and application

Test Specimen Preparation

  1. Specimen Form: The test specimen is a uniform cylindrical sample with a reduced cross - section. This shape ensures that the stress distribution during the tension - compression fatigue test is relatively uniform, which is conducive to accurately reflecting the fatigue characteristics of the material.

  2. Pre - test Treatment: After preparing the specimen, it needs to be firmly clamped at both ends during installation. It is crucial to align the longitudinal centerline of the specimen with the loading axis of the testing machine. This alignment prevents the specimen from being subjected to additional bending moments during the test, which could otherwise affect the accuracy of the test results.


Application Value: 

It is widely used in the orthopedic medical material industry. In the R&D stage, it can help developers optimize the formula of acrylic bone cement; in the production quality control stage, it can be used to inspect the consistency of the fatigue performance of each batch of bone cement. Meanwhile, the test results can also provide reference data for regulatory agencies to evaluate the safety of such medical materials.

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