Evaluation of Corrosive Properties of Hafnium Nitride Coating Over Titanium Screws: An In Vitro Study

Abstract

Background Varied surface coatings have been studied time and again in medical sciences. Whether general or dental, studying the performance of coatings aims to assess their potential to improve the durability and longevity of titanium implants, thereby advancing implant technology for enhanced patient outcomes. Various analytical techniques are utilized to assess the performance of the coating, providing insights into its effectiveness in preventing corrosion. The findings of this evaluation will contribute to our understanding of corrosion mitigation strategies for titanium implants and pave the way for the development of more durable implant materials. This article aims to evaluate the corrosion resistance of an innovative metal compound coating applied over titanium implants. Materials and methods In this study, a total of 20 medical-grade, commercially pure titanium screws were collected. The dimensions of the titanium screws were 2mm x 7mm. Around 10 of these commercially pure titanium screw samples were used as the control group. Hafnium nitride (HfN) (0.1 M) was mixed with 100% ethanol and stirred using a glass rod for about 48 hours. Then 10 of the implant screw samples were immersed in the prepared sol and sintered at 400 o C for two hours. The HfN-coated samples were then used as the test group. The corrosion resistance of both groups was tested using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization studies. The Nyquist, Bode impedance, and Bode phase angle plots were obtained and studied. Results Using the Stern-Geary equation, the corrosion current density was calculated. On analysis, these values indicated that the higher impedance in HfN-coated titanium screws showed higher mean corrosion potential (E corr = -0.452 V) and corrosion current density ( i corr = 0.0354 μA/cm 2 ) than the uncoated titanium screws. Conclusion It was concluded that the corrosion properties of HfN-coated titanium screws had higher impedance and consequently the highest corrosion resistance. This thereby provides a promising scope for further research of this novel metal coating for use in the biomedical sectors, specifically for dental implants.

Analyzing the Surface Topography of Hafnium Nitride Coating on Titanium Screws: An In Vitro Analysis

“…The surface morphology of implant coatings plays a crucial role in dental implantology due to their clinical relevance in enhancing osseointegration and long-term implant success. By influencing factors such as surface roughness, topography, corrosion, and wettability, HfN coatings over titanium can promote favorable interactions with surrounding tissues, leading to improved implant stability and reduced risk of peri-implant complications [15]. Hence, this study concentrated on analyzing the surface topography of the HfN-coated titanium implants.…”

“…HfN exhibits mechanical attributes such as hardness and wear resistance and is used as a coating on highend equipment for protection [17,18]. However, there is a lack of literature on this novel coating HfN, requiring basic to advanced evaluations of their surface topography and other properties favorable for dental implantology [15]. The findings from this research may carve a new path for the production and optimization of HfN coatings to enhance the longevity and augment properties of implant materials.…”

“…This hafnium metal coating of commercially available titanium implants has proven to show some superior properties to titanium with in vitro studies and soft tissue [11][12][13]. Hafnium nitride (HfN) coatings could be explored as promising in the osteoinductive properties of titanium implants [4,[14][15][16].…”

“…FIGURE 1: The coated and uncoated titanium screw samples a: Hafnium nitride (HfN)-coated titanium screws; b: Medical grade commercially pure titanium screws Image credit: Rajaraman et al[15] …”