XPS study on the use of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane to bond chitosan to a titanium surface.

Chitosan, a biopolymer found in the exoskeletons of shellfish, has been shown to be antibacterial, biodegradable, osteoconductive, and has the ability to promote organized bone formation. These properties make chitosan an ideal material for use as a bioactive coating on medical implant materials. In this study, coatings made from 86.4% de-acetylated chitosan were bound to implant-quality titanium. The chitosan films were bound through a three-step process that involved the deposition of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) in toluene, followed by a reaction between the amine end of APTES with gluteraldehyde, and finally, a reaction between the aldehyde end of gluteraldehyde and chitosan. Two different metal treatments were examined to determine if major differences in the ability to bind chitosan could be seen. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to examine the surface of the titanium metal and to study the individual reaction steps. The changes to the titanium surface were consistent with the...