Anodized Tantalum Surfaces for Orthopedic Applications

Currently used implant materials do not suffice the needs of patients mainly due to their poor osseointegration with the juxtaposed bone tissue, which ultimately leads to failure of the implant. To overcome this issue, better orthopedic implants exhibiting bioactive characteristics are required. Tantalum is a good candidate as a new generation orthopedic implant materials due to its superior mechanical and chemical properties compared to the currently-used metallic implant materials. However, its bioinert nature prevents formation of firm and lasting interface with the juxtaposed bone. Herein, tantalum was anodized using different concentrations of aqueous and concentrated H2SO4-HF electrolytes under 10-30V electrical potential up to 2 hours to fabricate bioactive nanotubular, nanocoral and nanodimple surface morphologies on tantalum. To examine the bioactivity of the surface, simulated body fluid analysis was conducted up to 21 days. Findings showed that nanofeatured tantalum surfaces promote formation of CaP minerals