ceramic coating

 

Receive your instrument with a ceramic coating finish and benefit by cost reduction and improved ease of use:

  • Reduced eye-fatigue through no glare, light absorbing black surface
  • Longer Product Life:
    • Higher hardness: up to 10 times harder than stainless steel
    • Lower friction than stainless steel: up to 60% lower wear rate
    • Resistance against corrosion better than stainless steel through Al2O3 formation
  • Easier cleaning and reprocessing due to hydrophobic properties
  • 100% Anti-Allergic due to absence of Chromium and Nickel in surface layer

How it's done

a1 medical ceramic coatings are created by applying a layer of Titanium Aluminum Nitrate (TiAIN) to the instrument, using an environmentally friendly PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) process. In this PVD process, a high purity target consisting of Titanium and Aluminum is magnetron-sputtered onto the substrate in a vacuum chamber. The metal particles of the target are transformed into vapor phase, interact with Nitrogen ions and get deposited onto the instrument as a few microns (µm) thin, high-density layer.


The Effect

Black ceramic coatings are not only visually attractive, but are also particularly suitable for surgical instruments. Their most prominent mechanical properties are their extreme hardness and improved abrasion resistance when compared to stainless steel. Oxidized Aluminum (Al2O3) at the surface of the coating effectively acts as a corrosion barrier, as can be shown in electro-chemical tests using salt solution.  In addition, the resulting lower surface tension of the layer leads to a hydrophobic effect, making instruments easier to clean after surgery.

The outstanding medical property of the coating is it’s biocompatibility, enabled by the complete absence of potentially allergy causing Chromium and Nickel compounds in the surface layer. All of these medical, mechanical and chemical properties are proven in numerous studies* and more than a decade of use in demanding surgical fields, such as neurology or cardiology.


The Offer

a1 medical offers ceramic coating for all stainless steel and titanium products, including:

  • Scissors
  • Forceps
  • Needle Holders
  • Hooks
  • Speculums
  • Clamps
  • Spatulas
  • etc.

Contact your local a1 medical dealer for a quote.


*Examples
  1. Bio-compatible Low Reflective Coatings for Surgical Tools using Reactive DC-Magnetron Sputtering and Arc-Evaporation - a Comparison regarding Steam Sterilization Resistance and Nickel Diffusion - Frank Hollstein, Petr Louda - 26. International Conference on Metallurgical Coatings and Thin Films, San Diego, April 12-15, 1999, Paper G1-8
  2. Erosion and Corrosion Behaviors of ADI Deposited TiN/TiAlN Coatings by Cathodic Arc Evaporation - Cheng-Hsun Hsu, Jung-Kai Lu, Kuei-Liang Lai and Ming-Li Chen - Materials Transactions, Vol. 46, No. 6 (2005) pp. 1417 to 1424 - The Japan Institute of Metals
  3. Electrochemical corrosion and materials properties of reactively sputtered TiN/TiAlN multilayer coatings - R. Ananthakumar, B. Subramanian, Akira Kobayashi, M. Jayachandran - Ceramics International 38 (2012) 477–485
  4. Investigation of properties and corrosion behavior of hard TiAlN and AlCrN PVD thin coatings in the 3 wt% NaCl solution - Vikas Chawla, Amita Chawla, Y. Mehta, D. Puri, S. Prakash and Buta Singh Sidhu - Journal of the Australian Ceramic Society Volume 47[1], 2011, 48-55