The corrosion and bioactivity behavior of SiC doped hydroxyapatite for dental applications

Hydroxyapatite (HAP) coatings are commonly used to improve the bioactivity of Ti alloy used for orthopedic or dental implants. Recently, in order to decrease the dissolution rate and to improve the mechanical and anticorrosive properties, as well as the osseointegration of the HAP coated titanium alloy, the addition of different elements (Si or Ti) into HAP films was proposed. The goal of this work was to enhance the bioactivity and corrosion resistance of HAP films by SiC addition. The coatings were deposited on Ti6Al4V alloy substrates by co-sputtering of HAP and SiC targets in a magnetron sputtering system. The films were characterized in terms of elemental composition, morphology and corrosion resistance in artificial saliva by EDS, SEM, and electrochemical techniques, respectively. The coatings were proposed to be used in dental applications. For this reason, in vitro bioactivity was investigated after 24h immersion in artificial saliva. The improvement of the bioactivity and corrosion behavior was demonstrated for HAP coatings enriched with SiC.