Preliminary validation of a dynamic electrochemical biodegradation test bench in pseudo-physiological conditions

Abstract

There is a growing interest in the development of next generation stent materials. In vitro tests that accurately predict in vivo conditions, are needed for a full evaluation of a material’s corrosion in vivo. In this manuscript a novel approach for the design of a dynamic electrochemical test bench is evaluated in hopes to later characterize and model biodegradable metallic stent materials. This dynamic test bench design allows for real-time corrosion testing with easy variation of temperature, shear stress, and simulated body fluids (SBF), with minimal complications of test sample fabrication. Preliminary tests have shown Tafel generation stable. Further testing of the stability of the test bench were conducted with the incorporation SBF, shear stress, and temperature. Shear stress was applied through variation in fluid velocities at 0 m/s, 0.127 m/s, 0.245 m/s, 0.372 m/s, 0.489 m/s at 37°C. Incorporation of the different SBFs showed no significant difference in corrosion readings; however, variances were observed higher in DMEM and PBS, than in Hanks, respectively. This dynamic test bench showed to be relatively stable under temperature and SBF modification; however, further optimization is needed to decrease variances seen throughout fluid velocity analysis.

Remotely Controlled Electrochemical Degradation of Metallic Implants

“…The relevance of electrolyte flow for electrochemical investigations in general, and specifically in implant degradation, is well documented. [64][65][66] We developed a degradation setup that allows to distinguish between inherent properties of galvanic corrosion and secondary effects caused by corrosion product enrichment and re-deposition. Specifically, the setup provides a steady supply of fresh electrolyte to the electrodes while collecting used electrolyte in a separate container (Figure 3A-2).…”