Mechanical properties of sol–gel calcium titanate bioceramic coatings on titanium

We discuss the mechanical properties and wear characteristics of sol–gel CaTiO3 nanocrystalline ceramic coatings on titanium substrates. The structure and surface morphology of the coatings were investigated by X-ray diffraction, optical profilometry, and atomic force microscopy. The mechanical properties of CaTiO3 coatings were characterized by using nanoindentation, scratch- and microwear-tests. The effect of titanium nitride intermediate layer on the improvement of the coating properties has been investigated. The best CaTiO3 coatings with a TiN intermediate layer demonstrated the bonding strength up to 70 MPa, stability and low linear wear rate (∼ 1 μm per million cycles) during ball-on-disc reciprocal wear tests in micromotion (50–500 μm amplitude) with Ti6Al4V-alloy static partner at contact pressures up to 500 MPa in both dry and simulated body fluid environments.