Surface Analysis of Treated Nitinol Alloys

Recently a lot of interest has been generated in surface modifications of Nitinol alloys for the inhibition of nickel release. These surface treatments play a critical role in enhancing the corrosion resistance and biocompatibility of Nitinol alloys. In this study, different surface treatments have been applied to Nitinol alloys and corrosion resistance was measured by ASTM F 2129-08. The rate of Ni release was measured by ICPMS analysis. Surface morphology, texture and chemistry of untreated and treated alloys were further investigated by SEM, EDS, AFM and XPS for comparative analysis.