Thermally driven stability of octadecylphosphonic acid thin films grown on SS316L

Stainless steel 316L is widely used as a biomedical implant material; however, there is concern about the corrosion of metallic implants in the physiological environment. The corrosion process can cause mechanical failure due to resulting cracks and cavities in the implant. Alkyl phosphonic acid forms a thin film by self-assembly on the stainless steel surface and this report conclusively shows that thermal treatment of the octadecylphosphonic acid (ODPA) film greatly enhances the stability of the ODPA molecules on the substrate surface. AFM images taken from the modified substrates revealed that thermally treated films remain intact after methanol, THF, and water flushes, whereas untreated films suffer substantial loss. Water contact angles also show that the hydrophobicity of thermally treated films does not diminish after being incubated in a dynamic flow of water for a 3-hour period, whereas the untreated film becomes increasingly hydrophilic due to loss of ODPA. IR spectra taken of both treated and untreated films after water and THF flushes show that the remaining film retains its initial crystallinity. A model is suggested to explain the stability of ODPA film enhanced by thermal treatment. An ODPA molecule is physisorbed to the surface weakly by hydrogen bonding. Heating drives away water molecules leading to the formation of strong monodentate or mixed mono/bi-dentate bonds of ODPA molecule to the surface.