Diamond-like carbon electrochemical corrosion resistance by addition of nanocrystalline diamond particles for biomedical applications

Abstract

Combining chemical and mechanical properties of diamond-like carbon (DLC) films opens the possibilities for its use in electrochemical applications. DLC electrochemical corrosion behavior is heavily dependent on deposition techniques and precursor gas. In this paper, nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) particles were incorporated into DLC films to study NCD-DLC electrochemical corrosion resistance in biomedical area. The films were grown over 316L stainless steel using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition. NCD particles were incorporated into DLC during the deposition. Raman scattering spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy characterized NCD-DLC structure and morphology. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy and potentiodynamic method investigate NCD-DLC electrochemical corrosion behavior in simulated body fluid. The presence of NCD particles increases the DLC corrosion resistance. However, as the NCD concentration increases, the disorder also increases. Therefore, DLC films at lower concentration of NCD particles had the maximum corrosion resistance. From these results, NCD-DLC films can be considered a potential candidate for an anticorrosion material in biomedical applications.