• Blanquer, Andreu
• Ibáñez, Elena
• Escobar, Michael
• Gemming, Thomas
• Careta, Oriol
• Fornell, Jordina
• Nogués, C.
• Gebert, Annett
• Pellicer, Eva
• Sort, Jordi
• Solsona, Pau
• Bartkowska, Aleksandra
• Navas, Nora Fernández
• Alberta, Ludovico Andrea

Abstract

Commercially available titanium alloys such as Ti-6Al-4V are established in clinical use as load-bearing bone implant materials. However, concerns about the toxic effects of vanadium and aluminum have prompted the development of Al- and V-free β-Ti alloys. Herein, a new alloy composed of non-toxic elements, namely Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta (wt%), has been fabricated by arc melting. The resulting single β-phase alloy shows improved mechanical properties (Young’s modulus and hardness) and similar corrosion behavior in simulated body fluid when compared with commercial Ti-6Al-4V. To increase the cell proliferation capability of the new biomaterial, the surface of Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta was modified by electrodepositing calcium phosphate (CaP) ceramic layers. Coatings with a Ca/P ratio of 1.47 were obtained at pulse current densities, −jc, of 1.8–8.2 mA/cm2, followed by 48 h of NaOH post-treatment. The thickness of the coatings has been measured by scanning electron microscopy from an ion beam cut, resulting in an average thickness of about 5 μm. Finally, cytocompatibility and cell adhesion have been evaluated using the osteosarcoma cell line Saos-2, demonstrating good biocompatibility and enhanced cell proliferation on the CaP-modified Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta material compared with the bare alloy, even outperforming their CaP-modified Ti-6-Al-4V counterparts.

Topics

• surface
• corrosion
• phase
• scanning electron microscopy
• aluminium
• hardness
• titanium
• titanium alloy
• ceramic
• Calcium
• vanadium
• biocompatibility