Robust bioinspired superhydrophobic coating on titanium: Preparation and dual anti-corrosion and anti-biofouling functionality

Despite inherent corrosion resistance of titanium and its alloys, their performance can be compromised in service by galvanic corrosion, hydrogen embrittlement, and biofouling. In this study, an integrated approach combining micro-arc oxidation (MAO) with electrochemical deposition is employed to fabricate a robust superhydrophobic surface (SHS) on TA2 titanium alloy, achieving integration of wear resistance, corrosion inhibition, and anti-fouling properties. Firstly, the ceramic layer is fabricated onto the Ti alloy surface via the MAO approach, and the porous matrix is achieved. Secondly, the electrodeposition is used to grow the europium myristate complex, which shows the superhydrophobicity wettability due to the intrinsic hydrophobicity and roughness of the deposit. For the anticorrosion capability evaluation, the potentiodynamic polarization curves indicate that the SHS has the lowest corrosion current density ( i corr  = 2.67 × 10 −8 A/cm 2 ), compared with the MAO coating ( i corr  = 3.08 × 10 −7 A/cm 2 ) and bare TA2 substrate ( i corr  = 4.60 × 10 −7 A/cm 2 ). For the anti-biofouling performance, surface coverage of P. aeruginosa biofilm is at 15.48% for TA2, 4.20% for the MAO coating, and only 0.14% for the SHS. These results demonstrate that the MAO/SHS composite coating developed on the TA2 substrate is a highly promising strategy to mitigate biofouling.