A new antibacterial Co-Cr-Mo-Cu alloy: Preparation, biocorrosion, mechanical and antibacterial property

•An antibacterial Co-Cr-Mo-Cu alloy was successfully prepared by adding Cu element.•The Co-Cr-Mo-Cu alloy exhibited antibacterial property in vitro.•The antibacterial property may have relationship with the high Cu ion release on the surface.

Co-Cr-Mo alloys have been widely used in hip implants due to their good anti-corrosion and good wear resistance. However, complaint is still raising due to infection and inflammation. In this paper, Cu element was selected and added in Co-Cr-Mo alloy in order to develop Co-Cr-Mo-Cu alloys with antibacterial property based on the consideration that Cu element is a kind of antibacterial agent. The microstructure, corrosion resistance, mechanical property and wear property of Co-Cr-Mo-Cu alloys was investigated in comparison with Co-Cr-Mo alloy. The results showed that the addition of Cu element slightly improved the corrosion resistance and had limited influence on the mechanical property, but reduced the wear resistance. The antibacterial property of the Cu containing Co-based alloys was also assessed in comparison with Co-based alloy. It was demonstrated that the Cu-containing alloy exhibited strong antibacterial ability against Staphylococcus aureus. It was deduced that the tiny Cu phases contributed to the strong antibacterial activity. The strong antibacterial property and good corrosion resistance suggested that Cu-containing Co alloys could have potential application as an implant material.