A joint prosthesis system is suitable for cementless fixation. The system has two metal implant components and a bearing. One of the metal implant components has an articulation surface for articulation with the bearing. The other metal implant component has a mounting surface for supporting the bearing. One of the metal implant components includes a solid metal portion and a porous metal portion. The porous metal portion has surfaces with different characteristics, such as roughness, to improve bone fixation, ease removal of the implant component in a revision surgery, reduce soft tissue irritation, improve the strength of a sintered bond between the solid and porous metal portions, or reduce or eliminate the possibility of blood traveling through the porous metal portion into the joint space. A method of making the joint prosthesis is also disclosed. The invention may also be applied to discrete porous metal implant components, such as augment.

A joint prosthesis system is suitable for cementless fixation. The system includes a metal implant component that has a mounting surface for supporting an insert. The metal implant component includes a solid metal portion and a porous metal portion. The porous metal portion has surfaces with different characteristics, such as roughness, to improve bone fixation, ease removal of the implant component in a revision surgery, reduce soft tissue irritation, improve the strength of a sintered bond between the solid and porous metal portions, or reduce or eliminate the possibility of blood traveling through the porous metal portion into the joint space. A method of making the joint prosthesis is also disclosed. The invention may also be applied to discrete porous metal implant components, such as augment.

A joint prosthesis system is suitable for cementless fixation. The system includes a metal implant component that has a mounting surface for supporting an insert. The metal implant component includes a solid metal portion and a porous metal portion. The porous metal portion has surfaces with different characteristics, such as roughness, to improve bone fixation, ease removal of the implant component in a revision surgery, reduce soft tissue irritation, improve the strength of a sintered bond between the solid and porous metal portions, or reduce or eliminate the possibility of blood traveling through the porous metal portion into the joint space. A method of making the joint prosthesis is also disclosed. The invention may also be applied to discrete porous metal implant components, such as augment.

Anode and cathode electrodes of a rechargeable lithium-ion battery are manufactured using metal foam. This lithium-ion battery with the metal-foam electrodes can have pores coated or filled, or both, with high-capacity active materials for greater energy density, better safety, improved power, and longer cycle life. Aluminum (or nickel) and copper metal-foam electrodes are manufactured using space-holder and freeze-casting methods. An anode can be filled with a graphite or silicon slurry, or a combination. A cathode can be filled with a lithium cobalt oxide (or other higher-capacity active materials) slurry. The relatively thick metal-foam electrodes are attached to the cell, separated by a separator, and wetted by an electrolyte, forming a high-capacity secondary battery. The battery will have higher density, improved power, and good cycle life.

Anode and cathode electrodes of a rechargeable lithium-ion battery are manufactured using metal foam. This lithium-ion battery with the metal-foam electrodes can have pores coated or filled, or both, with high-capacity active materials for greater energy density, better safety, improved power, and longer cycle life. Aluminum (or nickel) and copper metal-foam electrodes are manufactured using space-holder and freeze-casting methods. An anode can be filled with a graphite or silicon slurry, or a combination. A cathode can be filled with a lithium cobalt oxide (or other higher-capacity active materials) slurry. The relatively thick metal-foam electrodes are attached to the cell, separated by a separator, and wetted by an electrolyte, forming a high-capacity secondary battery. The battery will have higher density, improved power, and good cycle life.

Disclosed are methods of making porous zinc electrodes. Taken together, the steps are: forming a mixture of water, a soluble compound that increases the viscosity of the mixture, an insoluble porogen, and metallic zinc powder; placing the mixture in a mold to form a sponge; optionally drying the sponge; placing the sponge in a metal mesh positioned to allow air flow through substantially all the openings in the mesh; heating the sponge in an inert atmosphere at a peak temperature of 200 to 420° C. to fuse the zinc particles to each other to form a sintered sponge; and heating the sintered sponge in an oxygen-containing atmosphere at a peak temperature of 420 to 700° C. to form ZnO on the surfaces of the sintered sponge. The heating steps burn out the porogen.

This application provides a battery current collector and a preparation method thereof, a secondary battery, a battery module, a battery pack, and an electric apparatus. The battery current collector includes a foam metal layer (1) and a strength enhancement layer (2), where the strength enhancement layer (2) is a sheet-shaped metal layer, and the strength enhancement layer (2) and the foam metal layer (1) are stacked and metallurgically bonded, alleviating a problem of poor mechanical performance of current collectors in the related art. The strength enhancement layer (2) and the foam metal layer (1) are connected by metallurgical bonding, which helps ensure not only structural strength of the strength enhancement layer (2) and the foam metal layer (1), but also good conductivity between the strength enhancement layer (2) and the foam metal layer (1). Further, the manner of metallurgical bonding helps reduce production costs.

The present application provides a method for manufacturing a metal foam. The present application can provide a method for manufacturing a metal foam, which is capable of forming a metal foam comprising uniformly formed pores and having excellent mechanical properties as well as the desired porosity, and a metal foam having the above characteristics. In addition, the present application can provide a method capable of forming a metal foam in which the above-mentioned physical properties are ensured, while being in the form of a thin film or sheet, within a fast process time, and such a metal foam.

Disclosed are methods of making porous zinc electrodes. Taken together, the steps are: forming a mixture of water, a soluble compound that increases the viscosity of the mixture, an insoluble porogen, and metallic zinc powder; placing the mixture in a mold to form a sponge; optionally drying the sponge; placing the sponge in a metal mesh positioned to allow air flow through substantially all the openings in the mesh; heating the sponge in an inert atmosphere at a peak temperature of 200 to 420° C. to fuse the zinc particles to each other to form a sintered sponge; and heating the sintered sponge in an oxygen-containing atmosphere at a peak temperature of 420 to 700° C. to form ZnO on the surfaces of the sintered sponge. The heating steps burn out the porogen.

The present disclosure discloses a porous structure Si/Cu composite electrode of a lithium ion battery and a preparation method thereof. The composite electrode comprises an active substance, a bulk porous Cu and a current collector, wherein the active substance Si is embedded into the bulk porous Cu, and the bulk porous Cu is in metallurgical bonding with the current collector and plays a dual role of binder and conductive agent, which not only relieves the pulverization and the shedding of the active substance Si particles but also improves electron transmission efficiency; and meanwhile, the porous structure increases the contact area between the active substance Si and electrolyte and increases the reaction efficiency of lithium insertion combination. The method of preparing the composite electrode comprises: with Si, Cu and Al powders as raw materials, preparing a SiCuAl precursor alloy on the Cu current collector by powder metallurgy and diffusion welding technology; and removing Al element in the SiCuAl precursor alloy by using a chemical de-alloying method to obtain a Si/Cu composite electrode with a porous-structure.