Tantalum Coatings Research Articles

Corrosion performance and mechanisms of tantalum coatings on 316 stainless-steel in subcritical aqueous solutions of NaCl and NaBr

The corrosion behavior of 316 stainless-steel with a tantalum (Ta-316) coating deposited using PVD technology was investigated in subcritical environments containing Cl− and Br− at 290 °C and 6 MPa. The corrosion rate of Ta-316 continuously decreased with increasing exposure time, demonstrating its high corrosion resistance. A thin film, mainly composed of Ta2O5, formed on the surface of the tantalum coating, preventing the diffusion of substrate elements. The corrosion process and mechanism of Ta-316 were also examined.

Investigation of the Processes of Retention and Release of Implanted Deuterium and Helium Ions for Tungsten and Tantalum Coatings

Investigation of the Processes of Retention and Release of Implanted Deuterium and Helium Ions for Tungsten and Tantalum Coatings

Biocompatibility and Corrosion of Microplasma-Sprayed Titanium and Tantalum Coatings versus Titanium Alloy

This study investigates the in vitro biocompatibility, corrosion resistance, and adhesion strength of a gas abrasive-treated Ti6Al4V alloy, alongside microplasma-sprayed titanium and tantalum coatings. Employing a novel approach in selecting microplasma spray parameters, this study successfully engineers coatings with tailored porosity, roughness, and over 20% porosity with pore sizes up to 200 μm, aiming to enhance bone in-growth and implant integration. This study introduces an innovative methodology for quantifying surface roughness using laser electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, facilitating detailed morphological analysis of both the substrate and coatings. Extensive evaluations, including tests for in vitro biocompatibility, corrosion resistance, and adhesive strength, revealed that all three materials are biocompatible, with tantalum coatings exhibiting superior cell proliferation and osteogenic differentiation, as well as the highest corrosion resistance. Titanium coatings followed closely, demonstrating favorable osteogenic properties and enhanced roughness, which is crucial for cell behavior and attachment. These coatings also displayed superior tensile adhesive strengths (27.6 ± 0.9 MPa for Ti and 28.0 ± 4.9 MPa for Ta), surpassing the ISO 13179-1 standard and indicating a robust bond with the substrate. Our findings offer significant advancements in biomaterials for medical implants, introducing microplasma spraying as a versatile tool for customizing implant coatings, particularly emphasizing the superior performance of tantalum coatings in terms of biocompatibility, osteogenic potential, and corrosion resistance. This suggests that tantalum coatings are a promising alternative for enhancing the performance of metal implants, especially in applications demanding high biocompatibility and corrosion resistance.

Surface Modification of NiTi Alloy with Sputtered Tantalum Coatings to Improve its Hardness, Corrosion Resistance and Biocompatibility

In this research, titanium alloys including smart nitinol (NiTi) were studied. The (NiTi) alloy tends to emitting (Ni) toxic ions due to its low resistance to corrosion within the body conditions over time. For (NiTi) coating process, the magnetron plasma sputtering (DC) technique was used with Aragon gas ratio of (90%) and Oxygen of (10%) in order to coat the alloy with Tantalum and its Oxide (Ta2O[Formula: see text] thin films. This is one of the methods used to improve the biocompatibility and better adhesion stability of the membrane on the (NiTi) surface, since Tantalum and its oxides are biocompatible and are not affected by the body fluids. Hardness, corrosion and biocompatibility were tested. The results showed improvement in the nominated properties using this coating technique. The hardness for the non-coated sample was (630 Kgf/mm[Formula: see text], meanwhile, the coated sample recorded (762 Kgf/mm[Formula: see text] using sputtering power of (25 W) with a thickness of (226 nm). Tantalum and its precipitated oxides on a pillar of thickness (90.4–226 nm) also exhibited a biocorrosion enhancement, when it was immersed in a Simulated Body Fluid (SBF). The corrosion rate for the non-coated sample was (1.204 × 10[Formula: see text], meanwhile for the coated sample, its value was (3.453 × 10[Formula: see text] at sputtering power of (15 W), considered as the lower corrosion rate. The scanning electron micrographs also showed an increase in the biocompatibility for the coated nitinol alloys (NiTi) in comparison with the non-coated, ones since it showed a clear formation of Hydroxyapatite (HA) on the sample surface after immersion in the SBF. This behavior was confirmed by the XRD measurements, which presented higher HA peaks on the coated samples surface in comparison with the non-coated samples.

Research on the surface characterization, corrosion and bioactivity of nano-featured tantalum coating on selective electron beam melted Ti6Al4V alloy

A nano-featured tantalum coatings with an average thickness of 800 nm and grain size of 50 nm were successfully prepared by Selective Electron Beam Melted (SEBM) Ti6Al4V substrates by DC magnetron sputtering technology. The details of the physicochemical properties, corrosion resistance and in vitro biocompatibility of the coating were systematically investigated. Elastic modulus of the nano tantalum coatings was around 123.8 GPa and the hardness was 8.08 GPa. Compared with uncoated Ti6Al4V matrix, the corrosion potential of the Ta-Ti64 samples was positively shifted and the corrosion current density decreased from 2.07 × 10−7 to 2.85 × 10−8 A·cm−2 (0.1 mV/s). EIS and PDP results show that the coating enhances the humoral corrosion resistance of Ti6Al4V, which can provide active protection for the substrate to prevent the release of toxic ions caused by long-term corrosion. The mouse osteoblast cell line (MC3T3-E1) is applied in this study for biological evaluation. The optical density at 450 nm results showed that the cell proliferation rate of tantalum coated surface was faster than that of Ti6Al4V sheet and pure tantalum sheet. The 5-day cell adhesion density is 1.26 and 1.32 times higher than uncoated Ti6Al4V and pure tantalum respectively. The nano-structured Ta layer significantly improved the initial adhesion of MC3T3-E1 cells and promoted cell proliferation. The corrosion resistance and biocompatibility of Ta coating are not only better than titanium matrix, but also better than pure tantalum. The results prove that tantalum coating is an effective method to modify titanium alloy and holds a great potential value on 3D printed personalized implants application.

Formation of tantalum coatings with a given structure on the surface of niti alloy by magnetron sputter deposition

Way for applying tantalum coating with a given structure to the surface of an alloy with a shape memory effect NiTi to increase the biocompatibility of implants from this alloy is presented. The coating was synthesized by direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering. The changes sequence of the structural-phase states depending on the thickness of the coating, that is, the rate of its deposition, has been established. It is shown that at a low magnetron power, ∼14 W in present study, a single-phase α-Ta coating with a bcc structure and a high degree of perfection of the crystal lattice is successfully synthesized on the titanium nickelide surface.

Wear and corrosion characterization of single and multilayered nanocrystalline tantalum coatings on biomedical grade CoCrMo alloy

Osteolysis caused by the worn-off particles of polyethylene (PE), and corrosion of CoCrMo head have been two major concerns in total hip replacement as they lead to its early failure. Here we report on the development of a Ta multilayered coating to improve the corrosion resistance of CoCrMo and minimize the wear rate of PE. Deposition of single-layered and multilayered Ta coatings was carried out at ambient temperature utilizingmagnetron sputtering with deposition pressure ranging from 0.3 Pa to 1.9 Pa. The hardness and Young's modulus of the Ta coatings ranged from 8 to 21 GPa and from 179 to 288 GPa, respectively. Excellent adhesion was observed on the Ta coatings deposited at a high deposition pressure. The PE wear rate was 4% lower when sliding against the Ta multilayered coating than with the uncoated sample. Furthermore, the Ta multilayered displayed a 61% greater corrosion resistance than the uncoated CoCrMo alloy. The results indicate that Ta coatings have great potential for artificial joint applications.

Mechanisms and Kinetics of the Hydrogen-Free CVD of Protective Tantalum Coatings

Mechanisms and Kinetics of the Hydrogen-Free CVD of Protective Tantalum Coatings

Optimization for solderability of large-size single-crystal diamond with heterogeneity alloys by tantalum coating

To ameliorate the solderability of single-crystal diamond with heterogeneity metals/alloys, tantalum (Ta) coatings were prepared on the diamond by utilizing the double glow plasma surface metallurgy (DGPSM) technique. Using Ag-Cu-Ti solder, the Ta-coated single-crystal diamonds were soldered onto cemented carbide (WC-Co) matrixes. The effects of metallization temperatures on the microstructure, phase, and solderability of the Ta-coated diamond were investigated. The results show that uniform and compact Ta coatings with increased thicknesses are obtained with increasing metallization temperatures. Besides, under all the temperatures, the diffusion layers composed of Ta2C and TaC could be formed at the Ta/diamond interface, which is beneficial to enhance the coating adhesion. The average shear strength of the soldered joint with Ta-coating increases first and then decreases with the increase of temperature. The maximum value is 118.7 MPa on the soldered joint with 850 °C Ta coating, which is approximately 57% higher than without Ta coating. Three failure modes occur during the shear process, including the ductile fracture of the soldered seam, brittle fracture in the interior of Ta carbides at the Ta/diamond interface, and brittle fracture of the single-crystal diamond itself. Among them, the ductile fracture of the soldered seam is the dominant fracture mode.

Особенности получения танталосодержащих покрытий на титане методом магнетронного напыления

Tantalum-containing coatings deposited on titanium in vacuum were studied. For deposition of films, a DC magnetron with a balanced magnetic system was used. High purity (99.99 %) tantalum sheet was used as a target. The current density of the glow discharge during the etching of the target was 20.4 A / m2. Plasma-forming gases were argon or a mixture of argon and oxygen. Three types of coatings of tantalum on titanium were obtained: the first one was tantalum oxide on titanium, the second — tantalum on titanium, and the third — tantalum on titanium with a tantalum oxide sublayer. The effect of a pre-deposited sublayer of tantalum oxide on the hardness and morphology of the “base-coating” system was studied. It was found that of the greatest practical interest is an oxygen-saturated tantalum coating with the thickness of 800 nm deposited on a tantalum oxide sublayer with the thickness of 75 – 80 nm. Nanoindentation of samples with a tantalum-containing coating without a tantalum oxide sublayer revealed an increase in hardness up to 39 GPa and in elastic modulus up to 194 GPa. In case of the deposited tantalum oxide sublayer, the nanoindentation hardness reached 60 GPa, and the elastic modulus was 230 GPa. This superhard two-layer structure had a bimodal hardness distribution and contained a Ta2O phase with a cubic crystal lattice. In this case, the proportion of measurements related to superhard inclusions was at least 43 %. The coating had a heterogeneous structure consisting of agglomerates with a size of 0.4 – 0.5 µm. The chemical composition of the surface layer was characterized by an oxygen content of 17.46 at.%, titanium — within 2.00 at.%, and tantalum — 80.54 at.%. An increase in the proportion of coating agglomerates with a size of 0.2 – 0.3 µm was observed from 53.13 to 68.25 % when using a tantalum oxide sublayer. The results make it possible to consider the developed process of obtaining coatings promising for the application of functional layers on titanium medical devices.

Tantalum Coatings Deposited on Ti6Al4V Alloy by Self-Designed Wire Electrical Explosion Spraying

Tantalum Coatings Deposited on Ti6Al4V Alloy by Self-Designed Wire Electrical Explosion Spraying

Research on the Surface Characterization, Corrosion and Bioactivity of Nano-Featured Tantalum Coatings on Selective Electron Beam Melted Ti6al4v Alloys

Research on the Surface Characterization, Corrosion and Bioactivity of Nano-Featured Tantalum Coatings on Selective Electron Beam Melted Ti6al4v Alloys

Structure of tantalum coatings on NiTi substrate deposited by magnetron sputtering

The paper provides the results of studies of the structural-phase state of tantalum coatings prepared by magnetron deposition. The coatings were deposited on substrates made of titanium nickelide with a shape memory. The NiTi temperature during coating deposition did not exceed 100 °C. The structural-phase state of Ta was determined by X-ray diffraction at different stages of coating formation. It has been shown that at the initial stage of deposition, two-phase coatings (α- and β-Ta) are formed. The synthesis of the coating from Ta leads to the growth of interplanar distance of the B2 austenite phase in the crystallographic direction (100). The growth of interplanar spacing is caused by formation of microstresses during interaction with incident tantalum ions. The lattice parameters of the B19 ‘phase, responsible for appearance of the shape memory effect, do not change during deposition of the tantalum coating.

Microstructure and biocompatibility of porous-Ta/Ti-6Al-4 V component produced by laser powder bed fusion for orthopedic implants

Tantalum is attracting more attention as an outstanding orthopedic implant material due to its excellent corrosion resistance and biocompatibility. However, the high melting point and strong oxygen affinity of tantalum make its preparation more difficult and costly. In addition, the high cost of raw materials also limits the wider application of tantalum. To break these limitations, porous tantalum coatings with different pore sizes were successfully prepared on Ti-6Al-4 V base by Laser Powder Bed Fusion, constructing an integral porous-Ta/Ti-6Al-4 V component with excellent bioactivity and osteointegration capacity. A strong metallurgical bonding was formed between tantalum and Ti-6Al-4V, and the bonding strength is more than 460 MPa. The porous tantalum coating is designed as diamond-like structure with strong symmetry. The porosity of tantalum coatings is 70%, and the pore size ranges from 447 to 865 μm. Its deformation characteristics are extremely similar to those of natural cancellous bone. The average compressive yield strength of the porous Ta coatings ranges from 5.8 to 24. 2 MPa. And the average compressive elastic modulus of porous Ta coatings (0.6–1.5 GPa) was close to that of cancellous bone. Corrosion resistance tests proved that the Ta-coated Ti-6Al-4 V alloy had an excellent chemical stability in simulated body fluid. In vitro tests showed that Mouse calvarial preosteoblasts presented a good adhesion and growth behavior on porous Ta coatings. Therefore, it is preliminarily determined that the customized porous-Ta/Ti-6Al-4 V component by Laser powder bed fusion can be a candidate material for orthopedic implantation. • A novel high-interface-strength porous Ta/Ti6Al4V component was successfully manufactured using Laser Powder Bed Fusion. • The mechanical properties of the component met the requirements of ideal orthopedic implant materials. • The component had a good chemical stability and an excellent biocompatibility in simulated body fluid.

Effects of powder characteristics and mixing powders on cold sprayability and corrosion properties of tantalum coatings

Tantalum is an expensive ‘exotic’ metal and it is of particular interest in terms of extreme corrosion resistance and bio-compatibility. Previous studies on cold spray of tantalum show that it can be successfully deposited, but limited effort has been performed to investigate and optimize the powder characteristics for improved cold sprayability and corrosion properties. In this study, two spherical (P1: hard, P3: soft) and one angular (P2) tantalum powders were used as the feedstock. Two mixed powders (20 wt% P2 + P1, 20 wt% P3 + P1) were also prepared and were deposited as well as the three single component powders. After cold spray, the coating microstructure (as-polished and etched cross-sections, top surfaces) was characterized via optical and electron microscopy techniques. Several industrial coating metrics, i.e. cold sprayability (porosity, deposition efficiency (DE), cohesion strength) and electrochemical corrosion properties were evaluated. Results show that: i) angular P2 powder, which is preferred for industrial productions due to its lower cost, exhibits the highest DE, corrosion resistance, and high cohesion strength compared to the other two spherical ones (P1, P3); ii) adding either P2 or P3 powders into P1 leads to much improved metrics compared to single component P1.

Effect of H2 Flow Rate on Corrosion Resistance of Tantalum Coating Prepared on Molybdenum via Chemical Vapor Deposition

Effect of H2 Flow Rate on Corrosion Resistance of Tantalum Coating Prepared on Molybdenum via Chemical Vapor Deposition

Tantalum as a Novel Biomaterial for Bone Implant: A Literature Review

Titanium (Ti) has been used in metallic implants since the 1950s due to various biocompatible and mechanical properties. However, due to its high Young’s modulus, it has been modified over the years in order to produce a better biomaterial. Tantalum (Ta) has recently emerged as a new potential biomaterial for bone and dental implants. It has been reported to have better corrosion resistance and osteo-regenerative properties as compared to Ti alloys which are most widely used in the bone-implant industry. Currently, Tantalum cannot be widely used yet due to its limited availability, high melting point, and high-cost production. This review paper discusses various manufacturing methods of Tantalum alloys, including conventional and additive manufacturing and also discusses their drawbacks and shortcomings. Recent research includes surface modification of various metals using Tantalum coatings in order to combine bulk material properties of different materials and the porous surface properties of Tantalum. Design modification also plays a crucial role in controlling bulk properties. The porous design does provide a lower density, wider surface area, and more immense specific strength. In addition to improved mechanical properties, a porous design could also escalate the material's biological and permeability properties. With current advancement in additive manufacturing technology, difficulties in processing Tantalum could be resolved. Therefore, Tantalum should be considered as a serious candidate material for future bone and dental implants.

The Effect of Thermal Oxidation on the Photothermal Conversion Property of Tantalum Coatings.

In this study, tantalum coatings are deposited by a plasma spraying method aiming at enhancing the biocompatibility of the titanium implant. Tantalum oxide coatings are gained through the thermal oxidation of tantalum coatings at different temperatures for photothermal therapy. The effect of thermal oxidation on the morphology, composition, and structure of tantalum coatings has been studied. The UV–VIS–NIR spectra results, cancer therapy effect in vitro, and photothermal conversion properties among the tantalum oxide coatings under varied thermal treatment conditions are compared comprehensively. It has been proven that the tantalum coating treated at 200 °C exhibits the most intense NIR adsorption, the highest photothermal conversion effect, and the most excellent photothermal ablation effect in vitro. The results reveal that incomplete oxidation at a low temperature leads to the formation of oxygen vacancies, which narrow the band gap; this promotes its photothermal conversion ability.

Mechanical, Electrochemical, and Osteoblastic Properties of Gradient Tantalum Coatings on Ti6Al4V by Prepared Plasma Alloying Technique

Plasma alloying technique capable of producing metallic coatings with metallurgical bonding has attracted much attention in dental and orthopedic fields. In this study, the effects of temperature and time of plasma tantalum (Ta) alloying technique on the mechanical, electrochemical, and osteoblastic properties of Ta coatings were systematically investigated. Ta coatings prepared at 800 °C possess better interfacial strengths than those prepared at 750 and 850 °C, and the interfacial strength increases with prolonged alloying time (30–120 min). At 800 °C, however, the increased proportion of the soft Ta deposition layer with alloying time in the whole coating impairs the surface mechanical properties of the entire coating, as convinced by decreased microhardness and wear resistance. Moreover, Ta coatings exhibit better corrosion resistance than the Ti6Al4V substrate in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle medium. The enhanced adhesion and extracellular matrix mineralization level of osteoblasts demonstrate the better cytocompatibility and osteogenic activity of the Ta coating. Ta30 (Ta coating prepared at 800 °C for 30 min) exhibits excellent mechanical, electrochemical, and osteoblastic behaviors and is promising in biomedical applications.

Tuning Ta coating properties through chemical and plasma etching pre-treatment of NiTi wire substrates

Tantalum coatings have wide applications including as corrosion resistant coatings and radiopaque films for biomedical implants. However, producing coatings of sufficient thickness with the desired mechanical properties remains a substantial challenge. In this study, we show that the microstructure and properties of thick Ta films deposited on NiTi wires can be controlled significantly by pre-treating the substrate surface via ultrasonication followed by Aqua Regia etchant, or by plasma-based etching alone, while maintaining overall adhesive strength. Films from plasma and chemically etched samples exhibited substantially greater bulk texturing in the <111> direction than the control film, also yielding more elongated and columnar grains. The extent of <111> texturing in each sample was reflected in differences in Σ3 CSL boundary density. Additionally, only plasma etching yielded a β-Ta secondary phase. These microstructural observations demonstrate that film phase composition, texturing, grain shape distribution and grain boundary characteristics can be optimised for particular applications, simply by applying different NiTi substrate pretreatment regimes. It is suggested that this bears significant implications for influencing bulk properties such as cohesive and shear strength, as well as ductility, conductivity and cohesion in thick tantalum coatings.