In recent years, a significant amount of research has been undertaken on biodegradable metals, mainly on magnesium-based materials 1. The emerging interest in biodegradable implants for short-term service life in orthopaedics aims to produce biomaterials with desirable biodegradability, biocompatibility and mechanical properties closer to natural bone. Post-degradation analysis revealed localized degradation in both pure zinc and the zinc alloy. However, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis suggests that pure zinc is susceptible to localized degradation, whereas the zinc alloy exhibited passivation behaviour. Potentiodynamic polarisation experiments showed that the zinc alloy exhibits higher degradation rate than pure zinc. Weight loss measurements revealed that the degradation of the zinc alloy was slightly lower during the initial immersion period (1–3 days), but marginally increased after 5 and 7 days immersion as compared to pure zinc. In vitro degradation evaluation was performed using weight loss and electrochemical methods in simulated body fluid (SBF) at 37 ☌. Biocompatibility tests were conducted using human alveolar lung epithelial cells (A549), which showed that the zinc alloy exhibits similar biocompatibility as compared to pure zinc. In this study, the biocompatibility and in vitro degradation behaviour of a commercial zinc-based alloy (Zn-5 Al-4 Mg) were evaluated and compared with that of pure zinc for temporary orthopaedic implant applications.
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