Electrophoretic deposition and characterization of chitosan/bioactive glass composite coatings on Mg alloy substrates

Electrophoretic deposition of chitosan-bioactive glass (45S5 composition) composite coatings on magnesium alloy (WE43) substrates was investigated. Two types of substrates were considered, one was the bare, non-pre-treated substrate, while the other one had been treated in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM). The protective effect of the coatings (of ∼2 μm in thickness) against corrosion was tested using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and the coatings' bioactive behaviour was determined in simulated body fluid. A tribo-mechanical characterization of the coatings was performed. Overall, results confirmed the importance of pre-treating the substrate to corrosion protective chitosan-bioactive glass coatings on WE43 alloy.