Corrosion Behavior and Biocompatibility of Diamond-like Carbon-Coated Zinc: An in Vitro Study

Owing to the desirable degradation rate and good biocompatibility, zinc (Zn) and Zn alloys are promising biodegradable implant metals in orthopedic and cardiovascular applications. Surface modification, such as deposition of coatings, is frequently implemented to further enhance their biological properties. In this study, diamond-like carbon (DLC) films are deposited on Zn by magnetron sputtering. The DLC films do not change the surface morphology of Zn but alter the hydrophobic properties with a contact angle of approximately 90°. Electrochemical and in vitro immersion tests reveal that the corrosion resistances of the DLC-coated Zn decrease unexpectedly, which is possibly due to galvanic corrosion between the DLC film and Zn substrate. Furthermore, the uncoated and coated Zn samples show hemolysis ratios less than 1%. The cells cultured in the Zn extract exhibit higher viability than those cultured in the extract of the DLC-coated Zn, suggesting that the DLC films decrease the cytocompatibility of Zn. The lower corrosion resistance has little influence on the hemolysis ratio, suggesting that hemolysis is not an obstacle for the design of Zn-based biomaterials. Our results show that the traditional concept of protection with DLC films may not be applicable universally and decreased corrosion resistance and cytocompatibility are actually observed in DLC-coated Zn.