An in vitro and in vivo study of biodegradable Zn–Cu–Li alloy with high strength and ductility fabricated by hot extrusion combined with room-temperature ECAP

Abstract

Deformation processing is a commonly used strategy to improve the microstructure and hence mechanical properties of biodegradable Zn alloys. However, a single conventional processing method is usually limited in achieving this goal. In this work, hot extrusion combined with room-temperature equal channel angular pressing (ECAP) was used to fabricate biodegradable Zn–Cu–Li alloy. Compared to the hot-extruded alloy, the further ECAPed alloys have significantly finer Zn grains and precipitate more submicron- and nano-sized ε-CuZn4 particles. Moreover, the 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy exhibits the best comprehensive mechanical properties with yield strength of 315 ± 3 MPa, ultimate tensile strength of 444 ± 13 MPa and elongation of 81 ± 5%, which are 13.3%, 38.8% and 72.3% higher than those of the hot-extruded alloy, respectively. In addition, in vitro and in vivo tests were performed on the 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy to evaluate its corrosion behavior, antibacterial property, cytotoxicity and biocompatibility. In vitro results showed that the 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy exhibits better corrosion resistance than the 8-pass alloy. Also, it shows good antibacterial property, hemocompatibility and cytocompatibility. In vivo results demonstrated that the 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy exhibits faster and more uniform degradation than the pure Zn (as a control group). Both the pure Zn and 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy promote formation of new bone, the mass of which increases over time. The 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy shows slightly weaker osteogenic capacity but better overall osteointegration than the pure Zn. Furthermore, both the pure Zn and 4-pass as-ECAPed alloy exhibit good in vivo biosafety.