This survey presents a thorough overview of the main types of biomaterials used for the manufacturing of implants. The use of different materials for the creation and refinement of medical devices aims at optimizing their properties and raising the level of safety for the patients. The purpose of the study is to classify the most common bulk materials used in medicine according to their nature, interaction with the host tissues and their function in the organisms. Some important advantages and disadvantages of the different classes of implant materials are considered. In the last few years there is a strong tendency toward the surface modification of biomedical devices. Various trends in processing of the materials are focused on increasing their corrosion resistance, wear resistance, biocompatibility and microbiological properties.

The hydrophobic azo dye 6-hexyl-4-(2-thiazolylazo)resorcinol (HTAR, H2L) was studied as part of a system for the centrifuge-less cloud point extraction (CL-CPE) and spectrophotometric determination of traces of cobalt. The extracted 1:2 (Co:HTAR) complex, [CoIII(HL−)(L2−)]0, shows an absorption maximum at 553 nm and contains HTAR in two different acid–base forms. Optimum conditions for its formation and CL-CPE were found as follows: 1 × 10−5 mol L−1 of HTAR, 1.64% of Triton X-114, pH of 7.8, incubation time of 20 min at ca. 50 °C, and cooling time of 30 min at ca. −20 °C. The linear range, limit of detection, and apparent molar absorptivity coefficient were 5.4–189 ng mL−1, 1.64 ng mL−1, and 2.63 × 105 L mol−1 cm−1, respectively. The developed procedure does not use any organic solvents and can be described as simple, cheap, sensitive, convenient, and environmentally friendly. It was successfully applied to the analysis of artificial mixtures and real samples, such as steel, dental alloy, rainwater, ampoules of vitamin B12, and saline solution for intravenous infusion.

The coating procedure appears to be an indispensable finishing stage in the production of Al based industrial products, engineering facilities and equipment. For this reason, there is an ever-increasing interest towards the elaboration of reliable corrosion protective layers with apparent coverage, adhesion, and barrier properties. In this sense, both the for­ma­ti­on of anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) layer and its further modification with silver enable the elaboration of advanced (Al-O-Ag) films with extended beneficial charac­te­ris­tics. The present research activities are aimed at the determination of the corrosion pro­tective properties of electrochemically synthesized Al-O-Ag layers on the technically pure AA1050 alloy. The structures and compositions of the obtained Al-O-Ag layers were characterized by X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The research activities were accomplished by means of two independent electrochemical characteri­za­tion methods: electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentio­dynamic scan­ning (PDS). The electrochemical measurements were performed after 24, 168 and 672 hours of exposure to 3.5 % NaCl solution used as a model corrosive medium (MCM), in order to determine the barrier properties and durability of the elaborated Al-O-Ag layers. The analysis of the obtained results has undoubtedly shown that the proposed electro­chemical Al-O-Ag layer formation can successfully be used for the creation of self-standing layers with apparent corrosion protective properties. Besides, Al-O-Ag system can be used as a basis for development of efficient protective layers suitable for application in biologically contami­nated media.

Materials for medical implants should have suitable mechanical properties, excellent biocompatibility and high corrosion resistance. They should not stimulate allergic and immunologic reactions and should not cause cancer. The use of aluminum as a construction material in implantology is continuously expanding. There are various methods for surface treatment to improve its biocompatibility. In this study aluminum samples anodized in 15% H 2 SO 4 or treated with positive or negative corona discharge were investigated. PDL-cell line of immortalized cells, precursors of periodontal ligament and RAW 264.7 cell line from mouse macrophages are used for the bioassays. The results show that 10 and 20 lls vitality, proliferation and growth. Polymer treated but uncharged samples show good results.

Anodic aluminum oxide films modified by silver incorporation (Al-O-Ag) under specific electrodeposition conditions were produced and their biocompatibility was analyzed by in vitro assays using mammalian cell lines. The results obtained demonstrate that Al-O-Ag substrates are well tolerated by human dermal fibroblasts. The alumina pads doped with silver for short time-period (30 seconds) showed the highest biocompatibility among all modified metal substrates and in comparison with three dental alloys.