Oxidation of Biocompatible Graphite–Ti Composite after Laser Ablation in Different Atmospheres

Abstract

The field of biocompatible material surfaces is a widely researched topic. Surface energy, surface topography and surface chemistry are important properties of biocompatible surfaces. These properties contribute to better osseointegration and adhesion of cells to implant surfaces. This article investigates the chemical and phase composition of the surface of a new titanium composite produced by powder metallurgy. Surface oxidation of the graphite– titanium metal matrix composite (TiMMC) after laser beam micromachining (LBMM) is discussed in this paper. Laser micromachining was performed in an argon shielding atmosphere and air. The aim was to determine the influence of the shielding atmosphere and the input parameters of LBMM on the presence of oxygen on the surface. Laser-treated surfaces were examined with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The phase composition was analysed with X-ray diffraction (XRD). Experiments confirmed that an argon shielding atmosphere reduces surface oxidation. The oxidation was also affected by the energy of the laser beam acting on the material. The maximum amount of oxygen detected on the surface after LBMM in air and argon was 38.6 wt. % and 24.2 wt. %, respectively. The presence of TiO, TiO2 and Ti2O3 oxides were detected on the surface after laser ablation in air. In contrast, Ti2O3 and TiO oxides were detected after laser ablation in the argon shielding atmosphere.

Study on Surface Roughness, Morphology, and Wettability of Laser-Modified Powder Metallurgy-Processed Ti-Graphite Composite Intended for Dental Application

“…According to [22,[77][78][79], the higher surface roughness resulted in a lower value of the contact angle, but with surface oxidation and organic contamination over time, the contact angle increased. The phase composition of the Ti-graphite composite after laser treatment was studied by the authors in [35]. Two types of oxides were detected on the surface of samples after laser ablation in the Ar shielding gas, namely, cubic TiO and rhombohedral Ti 2 O 3 , with a content of 50% and 60%, respectively.…”

“…To ensure better biocompatibility of the titanium implant surface, numerous mechanical (sandblasting, mechanical grinding, polishing), chemical (oxidation, acid etching, anodization), or physical (ion implantation, physical vapor deposition, laser treatment) surface modification methods can be used [25,26]. Among the aforementioned techniques, surface modification by pulsed laser beam, which represents a fast, easily reproducible, and low contamination process, can be utilized for the preparation of surface textures [27][28][29][30][31], isotropic and anisotropic surface structures [32,33], or biocompatible coatings with the appropriate combination of resultant surface integrity and chemical composition [34][35][36][37]. For example, a study [38] revealed that CO 2 laser treatment helped to significantly enhance cell adhesion and proliferation of MC3T3 and NIH/3T3 cell lines on a TiG5 alloy.…”

Laser Surface Modification of Powder Metallurgy-Processed Ti-Graphite Composite Which Can Enhance Cells’ Osteo-Differentiation

“…The influence of laser energy on the machined surface morphology, roughness, and chemistry of the Ti-graphite composite samples, prepared by pioneering a low-temperature powder metallurgy technique, was investigated and evaluated recently [44,45]. The authors illustrated that the amount of thermal energy incorporated in the working material had a remarkable effect on the machined surface and identified the surface profiles that could promote the osseointegration properties.…”