Hydroxyapatite-Coated Magnesium-Based Biodegradable Alloy: Cold Spray Deposition and Simulated Body Fluid Studies

A simple modified cold spray process in which the substrate of AZ51 alloys were preheated to 400 °C and sprayed with hydroxyapatite (HAP) using high pressure cold air nozzle spray was designed to get biocompatible coatings of the order of 20-30 μm thickness. The coatings had an average modulus of 9 GPa. The biodegradation behavior of HAP-coated samples was tested by studying with simulated body fluid (SBF). The coating was characterized by FESEM microanalysis. ICPOES analysis was carried out for the SBF solution to know the change in ion concentrations. Control samples showed no aluminum corrosion but heavy Mg corrosion. On the HAP-coated alloy samples, HAP coatings started dissolving after 1 day but showed signs of regeneration after 10 days of holding. All through the testing period while the HAP coating got eroded, the surface of the sample got deposited with different apatite-like compounds and the phase changed with course from DCPD to β-TCP and β-TCMP. The HAP-coated samples clearly improved the biodegradability of Mg alloy, attributed to the dissolution and re-precipitation of apatite showed by the coatings as compared to the control samples.