Magnesium-based nanocomposites: an overview of applications and challenges

Abstract

Magnesium alloys are widely used in the engineering and medical sectors due to their unique characteristics. Thus, their Young’s moduli are equivalent to that of human bone. Along with other properties such as their lightweight and biodegradable nature, these alloys attract material scientists for applications in the medical field. The pure Mg alloy is very reactive towards different chemicals, exhibiting low corrosion resistance. However, enhancing the corrosion resistance requires a mandatory addition of some reinforcements. Besides, it was identified that the nanocomposite materials consistently outperform other materials. Therefore, the present work studies different Mg-based nanocomposites according to the reinforcing elements, application challenges, and prospects. The effect of adding zinc, zirconium, calcium, strontium, and other rare earth elements (REEs) is also under discussion. These elements are selected depending upon their nature, i.e., these materials’ influence on the human body. The effects of REEs after their introduction into Mg-based alloys in terms of biocompatibility, mechanical properties, and corrosion performance are considered. Besides, consideration was also given to the influence of ternary elements on the Mg-based nanocomposites. Mechanical strength and corrosion behavior of composites in body fluid assume numerous challenges. The corrosion and mechanical characteristics of ternary and quaternary alloys remain poorly explored. These challenges are also discussed in detail, along with the application prospects of Mg-based nanocomposites.