A review on process prerequisites and biomedical applications of additively manufactured zirconia

Additive manufacturing (AM) has gained prominence as an effective technology for producing ceramic prototypes with enhanced dimensional precision, greater time efficiency, and lower cost. Extensive research has been undertaken to understand the formation mechanisms of zirconia ceramic components fabricated through AM and to enhance their performance. Despite these advancements, these techniques require further refinement to be viable for practical application. Consequently, a comprehensive understanding of the prerequisites and complete mechanism of the fabrication of zirconia using AM is essential. Zirconia is primarily utilized in the field of biomedical owing to its biocompatibility, mechanical strength, aesthetic appeal, and chemical stability. This article provides an extensive review of the entire process, including feedstock formulation, feedstock characterization, evaluation of printing fidelity, debinding, and sintering for each ceramic-compatible AM technique. Additionally, this article explores various applications, such as dental implants and crowns, hip implants, knee implants, bone scaffolds, and surgical tools within the biomedical sector. It also offers a detailed description of the evolution, fundamental properties, and basics of zirconia AM technology. The article highlights that zirconia AM requires optimized planning to produce high-quality end-use parts. Key factors such as adequate flowability, rheology, and optimized sintering temperature and duration are crucial for controlling final product quality. In the biomedical field, applications of AM-fabricated zirconia parts, such as surgical tools and knee and hip implants, reveal significant gaps. Further research is needed to fully unlock zirconia’s potential in these areas.