M. Velez, T. Day, Y. He, S. Jung and D.E. Day
Posters: J Nanomedic Nanotechnol
There is a need for improved and advanced materials in medical applications that are either more efficient than available commercial materials or are less expensive. For instance, there are over 6.2 million bone fractures in the U.S. each year and 10% fail to heal properly due to a delayed union and for which there are no load-bearing available materials for bone repair. Besides bone trauma repair, potential applications of new glass materials include wound healing (complete healing in less time, curing hard-to-heal wounds and inexpensive), improved materials for hemostasis (stopping arterial bleeding in 2 minutes or less, resorbable, flexible, non-toxic, avoiding thermal injury, durable, easy to use, and with long shelf life and stable at extreme temperatures), nerve repair (current materials are all polymer-based), and arthritis treatment (localized treatment instead of ?global? treatment). Collaboration with academic and private research centers have resulted in developing and manufacturing ?standard? bioactive glasses in different forms (powder, fiber, microspheres), novel borate bioactive glasses which resorb and degrade faster than silicate-based bioactive glasses. Example of applications include glass nano powders for dental composites and bone cements, bioactive glass fibers and powders for bone scaffold prototypes and composites, and sub-micron-size and nano glass fibers for wound healing and hemostatic matrices
Dr. Mariano Velez is a Senior R&D Engineer at Mo-Sci Corporation. He received a Ph.D. in Materials Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has conducted glass research for over 30 years. Current work focuses on materials manufacturing, design and properties optimization, use of nanoparticles and nanofibers, chemical and mechanical properties, and medical applications of new materials. Dr. Velez has directed or co-directed research programs funded by the Department of Energy, NASA, National Institute of Health, and the Department of Defense. He has published 80 technical articles and 3 book chapters on materials science and engineering