Dresden 2006 – scientific programme

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O: Oberflächenphysik

O 13: Solid-liquid interfaces

O 13.1: Talk

Monday, March 27, 2006, 15:00–15:15, WIL C207

The corrosion behaviour of surface- and heat-treated magnesium alloy WE43 in Simulated Body Fluid — •Petra Gunde, Peter J. Uggowitzer, and Jörg F. Löffler — Laboratory of Metal Physics and Technology, ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Due to similar mechanical properties between magnesium and the human bone and due to the biocompatibility and non-toxicity of magnesium, it might be considered as an absorbable implant. In the present work, the corrosion behaviour of the magnesium alloy WE43 in simulated body fluid (SBF) was investigated. The corrosion rate of the samples was worked out using two methods; the conventional weight-loss method and the hydrogen evolution method where magnesium-loss is calculated based on the amount of evolved hydrogen. Different surface and heat treatments were applied to WE43 samples and their influence on the corrosion behaviour was characterised by immersion in SBF, X-ray diffraction and impedance spectroscopy. All methods indicate that the corrosion resistance is significantly increased by these surface treatments. The outstanding corrosion resistance of such treated WE43 samples is assumed to result in a relatively thick and less crack-afflicted protective oxide layer. In conclusion, surface treatments as performed in this work, significantly influence the degradation behaviour of WE43 specimens.