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• Combined MMBS and FE simulation to train Gaussian Process Regression models • Pareto front analysis of material and design characteristics of the tibial tray • Open porous surfaces and lower Young’s modulus improve bone-implant interaction • Pareto-optimal can be achieved by additive-manufactured beta-titanium alloys The implant’s material properties influence aseptic loosening in total knee replacement. This study aimed to computationally analyze the biomechanical performance of the tibial tray, considering a wide range of titanium-based implant materials featuring open porous surfaces. A combined musculoskeletal multibody and finite element simulation of a total knee replacement during a squat motion trained surrogate models to predict periprosthetic bone strain energy and tibial tray stress. The analysis considered variations in the Young’s modulus of the tibial tray (YM T : 40 – 120 GPa), Young’s modulus of the open porous surface (YM S : 0 – 10 GPa), and surface thickness (S T : 0 – 2 mm). A Pareto front analysis revealed optimal biomechanical behavior for material and design combinations of YM T = 40 GPa, YM S = 2 GPa, and S T =2 mm. This configuration resulted in a 48.5% reduction in the volume of periprosthetic bone exposed to critical loading levels linked to disuse-related osteolyses. Maximum von Mises stresses, reaching 116.7 MPa, were localized at the transition between solid and open porous materials and remained below the reported fatigue limits for beta-titanium alloys. These preliminary findings establish foundational material property ranges for beta-titanium alloys, providing a basis for future research on optimizing alloy compositions and implant designs to enhance mechanical performance and long-term fatigue resistance in cementless tibial trays.
Saß et al. (Sat,) studied this question.