Corrosion Resistance of Ag/Zr Nanocomposite Coatings Deposited on Medical Co–Cr Alloy Using Plasma Spraying

Abstract

This study focuses on the corrosion resistance of Cobalt–Chromium (Co–Cr) alloy coated with Silver/Zirconium (Ag/Zr) nanocomposite coatings, using plasma spraying. The Ag/Zr nanocomposite materials are processed into nanoparticles with a range of diameters from 22 μm to 58 μm, because small particle size increases the adhesion between the anti-corrosion Ag/Zr nanocomposite coating and the Co–Cr alloy substrate, which can prevent oxygen from penetrating into the Co–Cr alloy substrate. The samples of Ag/Zr nanocomposite coating effectively diminished the number of microholes and cracks, as well as preserved the substrate's flexibility. We recommend using the Ag8Zr2 coating for medical applications because it had the highest corrosion resistance of all the samples we tested.