Crosslinked Polymer Coatings of Poly (Acrylic Acid-co-acrylamide)/Polyethyleneimine (P(AA-co-AAm)/PEI) on Titanium Alloy with Excellent Lubrication Performance for Artificial Joints

The development of coatings with efficient lubrication and load-bearing capacity is an urgent need for artificial joints. Here, we successfully fabricated poly (acrylic acid-co-acrylamide)/polyethyleneimine (P(AA-co-AAm)/PEI) coating on titanium alloy (Ti6Al4V) surface via UV irradiation and thermal treatment technique. The dual crosslinked network structures were composed of a P(AA-co-AAm) network via free radical polymerization and a PAA-co-PEI network via thermal crosslinking of amine and carboxyl groups. The thermally crosslinked P(AA-co-AAm)/PEI coatings exhibit a stable low friction coefficient (approximately 0.022) and exceptionally low wear volume, with a 93.8% and 92.6% reduction, respectively, in comparison to the pristine Ti6Al4V. These thermally crosslinked P(AA-co-AAm)/PEI hydrogel coatings exhibit excellent lubrication and anti-wear properties, providing a strategy for developing novel lubricating coatings in the biomedical field.