SOFT BIOACTIVE COATINGS BASED ON ELECTROPHORETICALLY DEPOSITED BIOACTIVE GLASS NANOPARTICLES AND POLYCAPROLACTONE

摘要

In this study composite coatings of polycaprolactone (PCL) and nanosized bioactive glass were produced on stainless steel by electrophoretic deposition (EPD) for biomedical applications. PCL was dissolved in dimethylcarbonate and bioactive glass nanoparticles were dispersed in ethanol for the deposition. The EPD parameters were varied in terms of voltage, deposition time, concentration of PCL and bioactive glass (BG) and pH. SEM showed that homogeneous composite coatings of about 5μm thickness were produced. Contact angle measurements indicated that the contact angle and hence the hydrophobicity of the coatings decreases with increasing BG content. The bioactivity of the coatings was investigated by assessing the formation of hydroxyapatite on coating surfaces in simulated body fluid for up to 15 days and investigating the samples by Raman spectroscopy and SEM. EPD was confirmed to be a suitable technique to produce composite coatings based on nanosized bioactive glass and PCL, which are of interest as soft (deformable) bioactive coating in orthopedic applications.