Influence of albumin on in vitro degradation behavior of biodegradable Mg-1.5Zn-0.6Zr-0.2Sc alloy

The immersion and electrochemical degradation behaviors of as-extruded Mg-1.5Zn-0.6Zr-0.2Sc (ZK21-0.2Sc) alloy in Hank's solution with and without albumins were investigated and the influencing mechanism was elucidated. The immersion experiment showed that the presence of albumins could inhibit the corrosion of the ZK21-0.2Sc alloy through the adsorption effect at the initial immersion stage. With immersing on, the albumins underwent denaturation and began to show the chelation effect, which accelerated the corrosion of the ZK21-0.2Sc alloy. With increasing albumin concentration, the corrosion potential of the ZK21-0.2Sc alloy increased while the corrosion current density greatly reduced. The electrochemical test showed the presence of albumins had nearly no change to the cathodic Tafel slops, but the anodic Tafel slops increased obviously with increasing albumin concentration.