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Orthoplastics Ltd has successfully developed and patented a method of gamma crosslinking in bulk. Whilst bulk gamma irradiation is nothing novel to an orthopaedic device manufacturer, close dosage control ( <5% of nominal) over all surfaces and throughout the thickness of all bars, certainly is.
We have installed bespoke equipment at a plant in the UK reserved specifically for this purpose. The distance to the Cobalt source was also researched very carefully so as to give as low a dose rate as practicable, .0.4 kGy/hour. There are schools of thought that believe that dose rates higher than this can give rise to unevenness of crosslink distribution, with a corresponding effect on material properties.
A welcome side effect of the patented process is reduced cost due to the volume of material presented to the source.
All crosslinked materials can be annealed either in air or in an inert environment according to customer specification. Material can also be stored and shipped in inert environments should customer specifications dictate.
Click here to review the validation report