This paper describes an experimental method, bio-ferrography, to separate ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) wear debris, generated in hip simulators, from bovine serum lubricating fluid. A total of 54 experiments were performed in which an enzyme digestion “cocktail” was developed and used to clean the bovine serum samples of extraneous sugars, proteins, and lipids that interfere with the UHMWPE particle separation. Erbium chloride was used to marginally magnetize particles in the fluid prior to passing through the ferrographic device. The particles were captured and separated from the fluid by traversing the treated serum across a magnetic gap of a bio-ferrograph. Morphology of the captured and separated wear debris was compared with particles from samples of fluid filtered through a paper sieve arrangement with pores of 0.05micrometers in diameter. The UHMWPE wear debris collected using the described experimental method, were found to be between 0.1 and 20micrometers in diameter with spherical and pill-shaped particles. The filtered UHMWPE particles were in the same size range as the debris separated using bio-ferrography. To show that the experimental method captured UHMWPE particles, the spectra of the chemical composition of UHMWPE from an acetabular cup insert of a hip implant and of UHMWPE particles separated using bio-ferrography were compared and found to be the same. To further demonstrate that polyethylene could be captured and separated through the experimental method, manufactured polyethylene microspheres in the diameter range of 3-45micrometers, were captured and separated using the bio-ferrographic process.

1.
Seifert
,
W. W.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, 1972, “
A Method For The Study Of Wear Particles In Lubricating Oil
,”
Wear
0043-1648,
21
, pp.
27
42
.
2.
Scott
,
D.
,
Seifert
,
W. W.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, May 1974, “
The Particles Of Wear
,”
Sci. Am.
0036-8733,
230
, pp.
88
97
.
3.
Westcott
,
V. C.
, and
Bowen
,
J. P.
, 1980, “
Magnetic Techniques for Separating Non-Magnetic Materials
,” U.S. Patent No. 4,187,170.
4.
Evans
,
C. H.
, 1983, “
Interesting and Useful Biochemical Properties of Lanthanides
,”
Trends Biochem. Sci.
0167-7640,
8
(
12
), pp.
445
449
.
5.
Evans
,
C. H.
, and
Tew
,
W. P.
, Aug 1981, “
Isolation of Biological Materials by Use of Erbium(III)—Induced Magnetic Susceptibilities
,”
Science
0036-8075,
213
(
7
), pp.
653
654
.
6.
Evans
,
C. H.
,
Russell
,
A. P.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, 1986, “
Demonstration of the Principle of Paramagnetic Chromatography for Resolving Mixtures of Particles
,”
J. Chromatogr.
0021-9673,
351
, pp.
409
415
.
7.
Evans
,
C. H.
,
Russell
,
A. P.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, Aug 1987, “
Approaches to Paramagnet Separations in Biology and Medicine
,” 18th Annual Meeting of the Fine Particle Society, Boston, MA.
8.
Russell
,
A. P.
,
Evans
,
C. H.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, 1987, “
Measurement of the Susceptibility of Paramagnetically Labeled Cells with Paramagnetic Solutions
,”
J. Biochem. (Tokyo)
0021-924X,
164
, pp.
181
189
.
9.
Mears
,
D. C.
,
Hanley
,
E. N.
Jr.
,
Rutkowski
,
R.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, 1978, “
Ferrography: Its Application to the Study of Human Joint Wear
,”
Wear
0043-1648,
50
, pp.
115
125
.
10.
Mears
,
D. C.
,
Hanley
,
E. N.
Jr.
, and
Rutkowski
,
R.
, 1978, “
Ferrographic Analysis of Wear Particles in Arthroplastic Joints
,”
J. Biomed. Mater. Res.
0021-9304,
12
, pp.
867
875
.
11.
Evans
,
C. H.
, 1983, “
Application of Ferrography to the Study of Wear and Arthritis in Human Joints
,”
Wear
0043-1648,
90
, pp.
281
292
.
12.
Evans
,
C. H.
, and
Mears
,
D. C.
, 1981, “
The Wear Particles of Synovial Fluid: Their Ferrographic Analysis and Pathophysiological Significance
,”
Bull. Prosthet. Res.
0007-506X, BPR
10-36
, pp.
13
26
.
13.
Evans
,
C. H.
,
Bowen
,
E. R.
,
Bowen
,
J.
,
Tew
,
W. P.
, and
Westcott
,
V. C.
, 1980, “
Synovial Fluid Analysis by Ferrography
,”
J. Biochem. Biophys. Methods
0165-022X,
2
, pp.
11
18
.
14.
Evans
,
C. H.
,
Mears
,
D. C.
, and
McKnight
,
J. L.
, 1981, “
A Preliminary Ferrographic Survey of the Wear Particles in Human Synovial Fluid
,”
Arthritis Rheum.
0004-3591,
24
(
7
), pp.
912
918
.
15.
Evans
,
C. H.
,
Mears
,
D. C.
, and
Stanitski
,
C. L.
, 1982, “
Ferrographic Analysis of Wear in Human Joints
,”
J. Bone Joint Surg. Br.
0301-620X,
64-B
(
5
), pp.
572
578
.
16.
Hirose
,
I.
, 1991, “
Ferrographic Analysis of Synovial Fluid in Total Hip Replacement
,”
Nippon Seikeigeka Gakkai Zasshi
0021-5325,
65
, pp.
1045
1059
.
17.
Doorn
,
P. F.
,
Campbell
,
P. A.
, and
Amstutz
,
H. C.
, Aug. 1996, “
Metal Versus Polyethylene Wear Particles in Total Hip Replacements
,”
Clin. Orthop. Relat. Res.
0009-921X,
329
, Suppl. S, pp.
S206
S216
.
18.
Ingham
,
E.
, and
Fisher
,
J.
, 2000, “
Biological Reactions to Wear Debris in Total Joint Replacements
,”
Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng., Part H: J. Eng. Med.
0954-4119,
214
, H1, pp.
21
37
.
19.
Burroughs
,
B. R.
, and
Blanchet
,
T. A.
, 2001, “
Factors Affecting the Wear of Irradiated UHMWPE
,”
Tribol. Trans.
1040-2004,
44
(
2
), pp.
215
223
.
20.
Shanbhag
,
A. S.
,
Jacobs
,
J. J.
,
Glant
,
T. T.
,
Gilbert
,
J. L.
,
Black
,
J.
, and
Galante
,
J. O.
, 1994, “
Composition and Morphology of Wear Debris in Failed Uncemented Total Hip Replacement
,”
J. Bone Joint Surg. Br.
0301-620X,
76
(
1
), pp.
60
67
.
21.
Amstutz
,
H. C.
,
Campbell
,
P.
,
Kossovsky
,
N.
, and
Clark
,
I. C.
, 1991, “
Mechanism and Clinical Significance of Wear Debris-Induced Osteolysis
,”
Clin. Orthop. Relat. Res.
0009-921X,
276
, pp.
7
17
.
22.
Willert
,
H. G.
, and
Semlitsch
,
M.
, 1977, “
Reaction of the Articular Capsule to Wear Products of Artificial Joint Prostheses
,”
J. Biomed. Mater. Res.
0021-9304,
11
, pp.
157
164
.
23.
Dowson
,
D.
,
Unsworth
,
A.
,
Cooke
,
A. F.
, and
Gvozdanovic
,
D.
, 1981, “
Lubrication of Joints
,”
An Introduction to the Bio-Mechanics of Joints and Joint Replacement
,
Dowson
,
D.
, and
Wright
,
V.
, eds., Chap. 13, pp.
120
145
.
24.
Ho
,
S. P.
,
Carpick
,
R. W.
,
Boland
,
T.
, and
LaBerge
,
M.
, 2002, “
Nanotribology of CoCr-UHMWPE TJR Prosthesis Using Atomic Force Microscopy
,”
Wear
0043-1648,
253
, pp.
1145
1155
.
25.
Klapperich
,
C.
,
Komvopoulos
,
K
, and
Pruitt
,
L.
, April 1999, “
Tribological Properties and Microstructure Evolution of Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene
,”
ASME J. Tribol.
0742-4787,
121
, pp.
394
402
.
26.
Tipper
,
J. L.
,
Firkins
,
P. J.
,
Besong
,
A. A.
,
Barbour
,
P. S. M.
,
Nevelos
,
J.
,
Stone
,
M. H.
,
Ingham
,
E.
, and
Fisher
,
J.
, 2001, “
Characterization of Wear Debris from UHMWPE on Zirconia Ceramic, Metal-on-Metal and Alumina Ceramic-on-ceramic Hip Prostheses Generated in a Physiological Anatomical Hip Joint Simulator
,”
Wear
0043-1648,
250
, pp.
120
128
.
27.
Mosleh
,
M.
, and
Suh
,
N. P.
, 1996, “
Wear Particles of Polyethylene in Biological Systems
,”
Tribol. Trans.
1040-2004,
39
, pp.
843
848
.
28.
Elfick
,
A. P. D.
,
Smith
,
S. L.
,
Green
,
S. M.
, and
Unsworth
,
A.
, 2001, “
The Quantitative Assessment of UHMWPE Wear Debris Produced in Hip Simulator Testing: The Influence of Head Material and Roughness, Motion and Loading
,”
Wear
0043-1648,
249
, pp.
517
527
.
29.
Lewis
,
G.
, 1997, “
Polyethylene Wear in Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasties
,”
J. Biomed. Mater. Res.
0021-9304,
38
, pp.
55
75
.
30.
Endo
,
M.
,
Tipper
,
J. L.
,
Barton
,
D. C.
,
Stone
,
M. H.
,
Ingham
,
E.
,
Fisher
,
J.
, 2002, “
Comparison of Wear, Wear Debris and Functional Biological Activity of Moderately Crosslinked and Noncrosslinked Polyethylenes in Hip Prostheses
,”
Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng., Part H: J. Eng. Med.
0954-4119,
216
, pp.
111
122
.
You do not currently have access to this content.