Surface characterization of anodized zirconium for biomedical applications

• Published in: Applied surface science 2011-05, Vol.257 (15), p.6397-6405
• Main Authors: Sanchez, A. Gomez, Schreiner, W., Duffó, G., Ceré, S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Exact sciences and technology; Permanent implants; Physics; Surface film; Zirconium
• ISSN: 0169-4332; 1873-5584
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2011.02.005

► Systematic surface characterization on electrochemically grown oxides at low potentials on Zr. ► Anodized zirconium used for biomedical applications. ► Surface modification as a route to enhance biocompatibility of permanent implants. Mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of zirconium make this material suitable for biomedical implants. Its good in vivo performance is mainly due to the presence of a protective oxide layer that minimizes corrosion rate, diminishes the amount of metallic ions released to the biological media and facilitates the osseointegration process. Since the implant surface is the region in contact with living tissues, the characteristics of the surface film are of great interest. Surface modification is a route to enhance both biocompatibility and corrosion resistance of permanent implant materials. Anodizing is presented as an interesting process to modify metal surfaces with good reproducibility and independence of the geometry. In this work the surface of zirconium before and after anodizing in 1 mol/L phosphoric acid solution at a fixed potential between 3 and 30 V, was characterized by means of several surface techniques. It was found that during anodization the surface oxide grows with an inhomogeneous coverage on zirconium surface, modifying the topography. The incorporation of P from the electrolyte to the surface oxide during the anodizing process changes the surface chemistry. After 30 days of immersion in Simulated Body Fluid (SBF) solution, Ca-P rich compounds were present on anodized zirconium.