Titanium Dioxide Coatings Doubly-Doped with Ca and Ag Ions as Corrosion Resistant, Biocompatible, and Bioactive Materials for Medical Applications

Abstract

The aim of this study was to develop a multifunctional biomedical coating that is highly corrosion resistant, biocompatible, and reveals the bioactive properties. For that purpose, titanium dioxide coatings doubly-doped with Ca and Ag ions were deposited by dip-coating onto M30NW biomedical steel. The influence of different ratios of Ca and Ag dopants on morphology, surface structure, corrosion resistance, bioactivity, wettability, and biological properties of TiO2-based sol-gel coatings was studied and discussed. Comprehensive measurements were performed including atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray reflectivity (XRR), corrosion tests, immersion test, contact angle, as well as biological evaluation. The obtained results confirmed that anatase-based coatings containing Ca and Ag ions, independently of their molar ratio in the coating, are anticorrosive, hydrophilic, and bioactive. The results of the biological evaluation indicated that investigated coatings are biocompatible and do not reduce the proliferation ability of the osteoblasts cells.