Mina Abdolmaleki

Gastdoktorandin (FunGlass Center, Trencin, Slovakia)

Suspension preparation and electrophoretic deposition of a novel coating including bioactive glass particles, polyether-ether-ketone (PEEK) and graphene oxide

Supervisor in Trencin: Dr. Martin Michalek

Supervisor in Erlangen: Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini

This study aims to address critical issues associated with inert metallic implants, such as lack of bioactivity, stress shielding, and infections by applying bioactive coatings using electrophoretic deposition (EPD). The proposed coating is consisting of polyether-ether-ketone (PEEK), bioactive glass particles and graphene oxide (GO). Bioactive glass (BG 1393-B3) is responsible for endowing the coating with bioactivity and biocompatibility. Biologically active ions can be added as a dopant into BG 1393-B3 to enhance antibacterial effect and provide possible selective toxicity for cancerous cells. The PEEK/BG composite offers a suitable Young’s modulus closer to that of bone, preventing stress shielding. Also, graphene oxide (GO) could improve the adhesion of the coating by binding the GO active sites with other materials in the composite and increasing the wear resistance of the coating. Recently, the different coating systems such as silicate BGs/PEEK, and PEEK/GO have been obtained by EPD [1,2]. The focus of this study will be on suspension preparation and EPD of the coatings on the Ti-based substrates.

[1]      M. Atiq Ur Rehman, F.E. Bastan, B. Haider, A.R. Boccaccini, Electrophoretic deposition of PEEK/bioactive glass composite coatings for orthopedic implants: A design of experiments (DoE) study, Mater. Des. 130 (2017) 223–230. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.MATDES.2017.05.045.

[2]      E.I. González-Castillo, T. Costantini, M.S.P. Shaffer, A.R. Boccaccini, Nanocomposite coatings obtained by electrophoretic co-deposition of poly(etheretherketone)/graphene oxide suspensions, J. Mater. Sci. 55 (2020) 8881–8899. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-020-04632-4.