Browsing by Author "Blanquer, Andreu"

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    Surface modification of Ti40Cu40Zr11Fe3Sn3Ag3 amorphous alloy for enhanced biocompatibility in implant applications
    (Rio de Janeiro : Elsevier, 2024) Tiwari, Kirti; Blanquer, Andreu; Pavan, Cristina; Tomatis, Maura; Navas, Nora Fernandez; Scaglione, Federico; Fiore, Gianluca; Turci, Francesco; Nogués, Carme; Rizzi, Paola
    This study focuses on the design of a new Ti based multicomponent amorphous alloy for the development of biocompatible implant materials with enhanced hemocompatibility and cytocompatibility. While this class of amorphous alloys has shown its potential for biomedical implant applications, there are major concerns due to the presence of elements such as copper which can lead to cytotoxicity in the human body during long term implantation. Nevertheless, copper is indispensable in the development of an amorphous alloy. Thus, the objective of this work is to selectively remove copper from the surface of the Ti40Cu40Zr11Fe3Sn3Ag3 (at%) amorphous alloy using the dealloying technique and produce a patterned protective passivated surface rich in Ti and Zr oxides. Nitric acid (HNO3) has been found to be effective in depleting copper from the sample surface. Optimization of treatment parameters such as temperature (70 °C and room temperature) yielded drastic differences in the morphology of the samples studied using Field-Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy. The treated sample surface demonstrated good hemocompatibility and cytocompatibility with primary human osteoblast cells (HOb) and human osteosarcoma cell line (Saos-2). Additionally, the treated samples showed higher ability to produce reactive oxygen species with respect to pristine samples, which could be convenient for preserving the implant from bacterial contamination. These findings contribute to the advancement of producing copper-depleted nanostructured Ti based amorphous alloys for biomedical implant applications.
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    Surface Modified β-Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta (wt%) Alloy for Bone Implant Applications: Composite Characterization and Cytocompatibility Assessment
    (Basel : MDPI, 2023) Escobar, Michael; Careta, Oriol; Fernández Navas, Nora; Bartkowska, Aleksandra; Alberta, Ludovico Andrea; Fornell, Jordina; Solsona, Pau; Gemming, Thomas; Gebert, Annett; Ibáñez, Elena; Blanquer, Andreu; Nogués, Carme; Sort, Jordi; Pellicer, Eva
    Commercially available titanium alloys such as Ti-6Al-4V are established in clinical use as load-bearing bone implant materials. However, concerns about the toxic effects of vanadium and aluminum have prompted the development of Al- and V-free β-Ti alloys. Herein, a new alloy composed of non-toxic elements, namely Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta (wt%), has been fabricated by arc melting. The resulting single β-phase alloy shows improved mechanical properties (Young’s modulus and hardness) and similar corrosion behavior in simulated body fluid when compared with commercial Ti-6Al-4V. To increase the cell proliferation capability of the new biomaterial, the surface of Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta was modified by electrodepositing calcium phosphate (CaP) ceramic layers. Coatings with a Ca/P ratio of 1.47 were obtained at pulse current densities, −jc, of 1.8–8.2 mA/cm2, followed by 48 h of NaOH post-treatment. The thickness of the coatings has been measured by scanning electron microscopy from an ion beam cut, resulting in an average thickness of about 5 μm. Finally, cytocompatibility and cell adhesion have been evaluated using the osteosarcoma cell line Saos-2, demonstrating good biocompatibility and enhanced cell proliferation on the CaP-modified Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta material compared with the bare alloy, even outperforming their CaP-modified Ti-6-Al-4V counterparts.