| Biocompatible Nanostructured High Velocity Oxy-Fuel (HVOF) Sprayed Titania Coating | ||
| Dr. Rogerio S. Lima1, B. R. Marple1, H. Li2 and Prof Khiam A. Khor2, 1National Research Council of Canada, 75 de Mortagne Blvd., Boucherville, QC J4B 6Y4, Canada, 2School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Blk N3, #02b-38, Singapore, 639798, Singapore Nanostructured titania (TiO2) coatings were produced by high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) spraying. They were engineered for being a possible candidate to replace hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings produced by air plasma spray (APS) on implants. They exhibited (i) no absorption/dissolution by the human body, (ii) mechanical properties much superior to those of APS HA coatings, (iii) porosity less than 1% (barrier against metallic contamination from the implant), (iv) lower micrometric roughness (Ra) than that of APS HA coatings (better cell attachment). In addition to these characteristics, the surface of the nanostructured coatings exhibited regions with nanotextured features originating from the semi-molten nanostructured feedstock particles. This nanotexture is considered an asset, due to its better interaction with the adhesion proteins of the osteoblast cells, such as vitronectin and fibronectin, which exhibit dimensions in the order of nanometers. Human osteoblast cell culture demonstrated that this type of coating supported osteoblast cell growth and did not negatively affect cell viability. | ||