Electrochemical and biological characterization of Ti–Nb–Zr–Si alloy for orthopedic applications

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 2312
• Main Authors: Bordbar-Khiabani, Aydin, Gasik, Michael
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 09-02-2023; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/45; 639/166; 639/301; 639/638; Albumin; Albumins; Alloys - chemistry; Biocompatibility; Biocompatible Materials - chemistry; Biomaterials; Cell culture; Corrosion; Corrosion resistance; Electrochemistry; Humanities and Social Sciences; Hydrogen Peroxide; Inflammation; Lactic Acid; Materials Testing; multidisciplinary; Niobium; Orthopedics; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Surface Properties; Titanium; Titanium - chemistry; Titanium alloys
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29553-5

The performance of current biomedical titanium alloys is limited by inflammatory and severe inflammatory conditions after implantation. In this study, a novel Ti–Nb–Zr–Si (TNZS) alloy was developed and compared with commercially pure titanium, and Ti–6Al–4V alloy. Electrochemical parameters of specimens were monitored during 1 h and 12 h immersion in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) as a normal, PBS/hydrogen peroxide (H
2
O
2
) as an inflammatory, and PBS/H
2
O
2
/albumin/lactate as a severe inflammatory media. The results showed an effect of the H
2
O
2
in inflammatory condition and the synergistic behavior of H
2
O
2
, albumin, and lactate in severe inflammatory condition towards decreasing the corrosion resistance of titanium biomaterials. Electrochemical tests revealed a superior corrosion resistance of the TNZS in all conditions due to the presence of silicide phases. The developed TNZS was tested for subsequent cell culture investigation to understand its biocompatibility nature. It exhibited favorable cell-materials interactions in vitro compared with Ti–6Al–4V. The results suggest that TNZS alloy might be a competitive biomaterial for orthopedic applications.