Surface Modification of Alloys

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2026 | Viewed by 996

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Innovation Center of the Faculty of Technology and Metallurgy, University of Belgrade, 11120 Belgrade, Serbia
Interests: advanced functional materials; biomaterials; titanium alloys; semiconductor materials; surface modification; microstructure; mechanical properties; biocompatibility; material science and engineering; nanotechnology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last two decades, advanced methods of surface modification have attracted tremendous research interest, altering the surface characteristics of alloys to improve their performance, such as wear resistance, corrosion resistance, hardness, protection from degradation exposed to chemical or mechanical damage, antimicrobial properties, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. This is important, especially in applications like aerospace, automotive, or medical devices, where surface durability is critical.

Significant knowledge has already been reported on the relationship between the surface and characteristics of alloys in the development of novel surface modifications and advanced alloys. Nonetheless, there is still considerable room for further deepening our knowledge in this area.

We gladly invite submissions for papers on topics suitable for the Special Issue “Surface Modification of Alloys”. This Special Issue will cover full papers, short communications and review articles on novel methods for surface modification, alloy characterization, and applications of advanced alloys. It aims to cover a wide range of topics, from basic research to industrial and medical applications, including investigating the influence of novel methods for surface modification on alloy characteristics, analyzing the behavior of surface alloys in different environments, and the consideration of future trends for the surface modification of alloys.

Dr. Veljko Djokić
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • alloys
  • surface engineering
  • surface modification
  • test and characterization
  • chemical properties
  • physical and mechanical properties
  • corrosion behavior
  • biocompatibility
  • industrial application
  • biomedical application

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

26 pages, 7608 KB  
Article
High-Pressure Torsion and Anodic Oxidation as a Method for Surface Engineering of Ti-13Nb-13Zr Biomedical Alloy
by Dragana R. Mihajlović, Bojan I. Medjo, Jelena B. Bajat and Veljko R. Djokić
Metals 2025, 15(9), 997; https://doi.org/10.3390/met15090997 - 8 Sep 2025
Viewed by 336
Abstract
The anodic oxidation technique was used for surface modification, resulting in the creation of a titanium-based nanotube oxide layer on a coarse-grained and ultrafine-grained Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy. The modified surface morphology was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray [...] Read more.
The anodic oxidation technique was used for surface modification, resulting in the creation of a titanium-based nanotube oxide layer on a coarse-grained and ultrafine-grained Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy. The modified surface morphology was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) method was employed to evaluate the corrosion stability of the Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy before and after anodic oxidation. Corrosion stability was determined by exposing the examined alloy to a solution that simulates environment in the human organism (Ringer’s solution). To examine the titanium-based nanotube oxide layer adhesion on the Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy’s surface, a scratch test was performed. The hydrophilicity of the modified surface was measured using the contact angle between a drop of Ringer’s solution and the modified surface. The anodic oxidation led to the creation of a nanotube oxide layer on the surface of the Ti-13Nb-13Zr (wt.%) alloy. The impact of the ultrafine-grained structure on the homogeneity of the nanotube oxide layer obtained using anodic oxidation was observed. The ultrafine-grained structure contributed to the increased diameter of the nanotubes, while the combined effect of anodic oxidation and high-pressure torsion significantly increased the roughness of the Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy’s surface, which is expected to enhance biomechanical compatibility by reducing cytotoxicity, providing a more adaptable modulus of elasticity for human body conditions and ensuring adequate corrosion resistance and hydrophilicity. In this study, it was established that the examined alloy had suitable corrosion resistance for utilization in medicine as a metallic implant in the human body. The scratch test showed acceptable adhesion from the titanium-based nanotube oxide layer created using anodic oxidation. Also, the determination of the surface contact angle showed that the surface after anodic oxidation was more hydrophilic than the surface before anodic oxidation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Surface Modification of Alloys)
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