A preliminary assessment of the corrosion behavior of CoCrAlSi alloy as a potential orthopedic implant material

Abstract

This study presents the experimental assessment of the corrosion performance of CoCrAlSi alloy in simulated body fluid (SBF) to evaluate its biocorrosion response and potential as an orthopedic implant material. Specifically, the alloy's microstructure was investigated to reveal the elemental segregations and severe segregation zones were identified and analyzed. Static immersion experiments were carried out in SBF in an electronically controlled water bath to examine the ion release behavior of the alloy. The compositions of the surface oxide layers forming upon static immersion were investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Then, potentiodynamic polarization experiments were performed in SBF at 37 degrees C, which showed that the alloy exhibited a transpassive dissolution behavior, constantly releasing toxic metallic ions. This warrants further elaboration to control the aforementioned ion release mechanism by optimizing the microstructure of CoCrAlSi alloy to evaluate its usability as a potential orthopedic implant.Graphical abstractCorrosion behavior of CoCrAlSi alloy in simulated body fluid