CaO-P2O5 glass hydroxyapatite double-layer plasma-sprayed coating: in vitro bioactivity evaluation.

Double-layer composite coatings composed of a P2O5-based glass/Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2 (HA) mixture top layer and a simple HA underlayer, on Ti-6Al-4V substrates, were prepared using a plasma-spraying technique. The in vitro bioactivity of these coatings was assessed by immersion testing in simulated body fluid. Both scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis and the ionic solution changes followed by atomic absorption spectroscopy and the molybdenum blue method demonstrated that these composite coatings induce a faster surface Ca-P layer formation than the simple HA coatings used as a control. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis demonstrated that the Ca-P layer formed was apatite. The combination of SEM and XPS analyses showed that the apatite layer was a calcium-deficient hydroxyapatite with a Ca/P ranging from 1.3 to 1.4 with CO3(2-) groups contained in the structure.