Fabrication and In Vitro Biocompatibility Evaluation of Zr 48 Cu 36 Al 9 Ag 7 Amorphous Alloy Scalpel

Zirconium based amorphous alloys are suitable for biomedical applications because of their excellent corrosion resistance and biocompatibility. In this study, Zr 48 Cu 36 Al 9 Ag 7 amorphous alloy was fabricated by arc melting and ingot converted into the plate-shaped amorphous alloy by the suction method in a water cooled copper mold. Scalpels of the amorphous alloy were fabricated by using the polishing method. The X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry confirmed the amorphous nature of the Zr 48 Cu 36 Al 9 Ag 7 alloy. Elemental confirmation of the amorphous alloy was confirmed with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. The hardness of amorphous alloy was compared with a commercial stainless steel scalpel. The observed corrosion potentials of the stainless steel scalpel and Zr 48 Cu 36 Al 9 Ag 7 amorphous scalpel were − 0.6 V and − 0.4 V, respectively which confirms that the corrosion resistance of the amorphous alloy is better than stainless steel. The biomedical application of the Zr 48 Cu 36 Al 9 Ag 7 amorphous alloy scalpel is supported by a comparative study that examined in vitro cytotoxicity, cell viability, and wound healing tests and compared it with the standard stainless steel scalpel. Graphical Abstract