Cerium-tricalcium phosphate coating for 316L stainless steel in simulated human fluid: Experimental, biological, theoretical, and electrochemical investigations

Abstract

Tricalcium phosphate (TCP) has many advantages in biomedical applications, especially in teeth and bones, and therefore many researchers focused on enhancing the properties of this material by different methods. Because of the importance of the cerium in repairing the performance of cells in the human body, this work aims to substitute the cerium in TCP structure to give better properties. Coating of Ce/TCP on SS 316L was applied by radio frequency (RF) sputtering technique. This coating was characterized by XRD, FESEM/EDS with EDS mapping, AFM, and electrochemical analysis. These techniques confirm the presence of Ce with TCP in the deposited layer and the SEM gave a more compact layer with higher roughness and lower average diameter. EDS mapping shows the presence of suggested metal ions in the coating. A theoretical study by DFM was done to illustrate the substitution of Ce in the lattice structure and stable sites for accommodation. Electrochemical studies showed that the presence of the coating layer improves corrosion resistance with 91 % protection efficiency.