Influence of NiTi Spring Dimensions and Temperature on the Actuator Properties

Abstract

Nitinol (NiTi) is used in many medical applications, including hard tissue replacements, because of its suitable characteristics, including a close elastic modulus to that of bones. Due to the great importance of the mechanical properties of this material in tissue replacements, this work aims to study the hysteresis response in an attempt to explore the ability of the material to remember its previous mechanical state in addition to its ability to withstand stress and to obtain the optimal dimensions and specifications for the manufacturer of NiTi actuators. Stress-strain examination is done in a computational way using a mutable Lagoudas MATLAB code for various coil radii, environment temperatures, and coil lengths. The computational methodology was done by varying the dimensions and the ambient temperature of the simulated NiTi spring actuator. The hysteresis loop is studied by increasing the external stress for a reversible martensitic transformation. The coil radius, spring height, and wire radius affect the spring force and deformations. In the same way, these parameters affect the strain and stress point values. These changes are shown through the martensite and austenite start and finish values. The NiTi hysteresis loop narrows with increasing ambient temperature or initial spring height. At a higher temperature, the force supplied to the actuator must be less for the same deformation; therefore, a higher ambient temperature provides more efficiency for the shape memory devices and a longer lifetime for the actuator.