Electrochemical investigations of magnesium in DMEM with biodegradable polycaprolactone coating as corrosion barrier

Magnesium and its alloys are being increasingly investigated as biodegradable metallic implant materials. However, the high corrosion rate and accumulation of hydrogen gas upon degradation prevent the clinical application of many magnesium based materials. Applying polymer or ceramic coatings is a popular approach to improve the corrosion behaviour of magnesium and its alloys. In the current research, a biodegradable polymer film of polycaprolactone (PCL) is prepared in different concentrations by spin coating, in order to influence the corrosion behaviour of 99.9% pure magnesium. The resulting polymer coating was qualified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and tape-test according to ASTM D3359-09 to measure the adhesion strength of the coating on the substrate. Furthermore, coated and uncoated specimens were stored up to 30 days at 37 degrees C in DMEM. The corrosion behaviour was investigated by polarization curves. The PCL-films were found to be uniform and without pores, but they show a low adhesion strength on the substrate. Nevertheless, remarkable improvement of the corrosion resistance of magnesium substrate can be obtained by the polymer films, depending on the film thickness and exposition time. In summary, coating magnesium with PCL is a promising method to tailor the degradation behaviour for biomedical applications. (C) 2013 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.