LAUSR

Abstract An Electro-Assisted Powder Metallurgical (EPM) route is able to prepare porous NiTi alloys with controllable porosities and pore sizes using nickel (Ni) and titanium (Ti) powders at a temperature ranging from 850 to 950 °C. Ammonium hydrogen carbonate (NH4HCO3) was used as a sacrificial space holder to tailor the porosity and pore size of the NiTi alloy and its properties, i.e., elastic modulus, phase transformation temperature, shape memory effect, and superelasticity. By optimizing the synthesis temperature and content of the sacrificial space holder (0–30%), the porosity (41–75%), pore size (22–174  μm ), elastic modulus (4.77–0.87 GPa) and the recovery strain (>2%) of the EPM-NiTi can meet or are close to the standard of natural bone (porosity: 30%–80%, pore size: 100–600 μm, cancellous modulus: 2%). Therefore, the EPM route is promising to prepare porous Ti-based alloys for implants.