Influence of surface modification on the apatite formation and corrosion behavior of Ti and Ti-15Mo alloy for biomedical applications

Commercially pure Ti and Ti-15Mo specimens were subjected to alkali-hydrogen peroxide and subsequent heat treatment to produce a nanoporous titanate gel layer with anatase phase. The surface morphology of the untreated, alkali-hydrogen peroxide treated and alkali-hydrogen peroxide heat treated specimens before and after 7 days of immersion in simulated body fluid was characterized using X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). The formation of nanoporous titanate gel layer and the growth of apatite layer over the surface modified specimens after 7 days of immersion in simulated body fluid were confirmed. Further, the electrochemical corrosion behavior of all the specimens was examined using potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopic techniques.