Variations of chemical, physical, mechanical properties, and biological and antimicrobial effectiveness of Ti alloys by coating with CaP doped with different amounts of Zn via micro-arc oxidation (MAO) technique

Titanium alloys are preferred metals as implant materials due to their advantageous combination of low density and high biocompatibility. However, the augmentation of implant surfaces with calcium-based coatings becomes essential to regulate corrosion rates and enhance the osteoconductive properties of the implant material. In this study, titanium alloys, specifically Ti6Al4V, underwent a transformative process wherein they were coated with calcium phosphate (CaP) ceramics doped with zinc (Zn) via micro-arc oxidation (MAO) technique, using varying concentrations of Zn compound in the electrolyte solutions. The chemical and physical properties of the freshly prepared samples were analyzed, both initially and after culturing them with Saos-2 cells. Furthermore, the antimicrobial efficacy against E. coli was examined. The findings unveiled the remarkable efficiency of the MAO technique in forming an uniformly distributed coat on Ti6Al4V, thereby enhancing its mechanical resilience and biocompatibility, depending upon the preparation parameters employed. It was shown that Zn doped calcium coating is very efficient to regulate various parameters such as corrosion rate and mechanical strength, and an increase in Zn content exhibited a favorable impact on cell attachment and antimicrobial efficacy. Surface modification of metallic implants via MAO technique can be applied in the production of advanced implant materials.