Mechanical behavior of a lower limb prosthetic socket made of natural fiber reinforced composite

Abstract

Transtibial sockets are commonly made of composites reinforced with expensive synthetic fibers such as carbon or glass fibers. It would be very beneficial to replace conventional fibers with the natural ones produced locally using an abundant wild plant like alfa (Stipa tenacissima) fiber that is economically sustainable and environmentally friendly. This work is aimed at studying the static and dynamic behavior of transtibial sockets produced from alfa and carbon fibers. The ultimate strength obtained during the static test on the carbon fiber socket and the alfa fiber socket is 3,400 and 2,900 N, respectively. Fatigue testing on the alfa fiber socket yielded a fatigue life of about 2,325,000 cycles. Locally produced alfa fibers could be used as reinforcement of composite materials in orthopedic applications such as transtibial sockets. This could make prosthesis more affordable and serve as basis for design of new standard sockets as a result of fatigue and strength data. Further mechanical viability study should be performed to ensure the feasibility of using alfa fibers in sockets.