Twist Static Friction and Creep Between UHMWPE and Bovine Skin for Human Exoprosthesis

Abstract The twist static friction and the creep behavior of bovine skin in contact with Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE) indenters were studied by employing both theoretical and experimental methods. Loads (1 and 2 N) were applied to bovine skin using different indenter shapes. Moreover, the creep area and the coefficient of static friction were also discussed and analysed for different time durations. The experimental and theoretical results showed that the Voight-Kelvin rheological model could be used to represent the mechanical response of the cattle skin. As a conclusion, the creep parameter and the coefficient of static friction of bovine skin increased in time. For the circular indenter, the creep area was higher than in the case of the other shapes. The study provides a base for more investigations on cattle skin behavior in order to be utilized on a rigid support (UHMWPE) as a new solution for “exoprosthesis support”.