Zinc shows promise for bone repair applications, while its strength and ductility require to be improved. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are exceptional reinforcements due to their superior strength, ultrahigh Young's modulus, and large aspect ratio. However, their strong agglomeration and weak interfacial bonding with the matrix are key bottleneck problems restricting the reinforcing effect. In this study, Ag nanoparticles were in situ reduced on CNTs and then the CNT@Ag powders were used to prepare Zn-CNT@Ag implants by laser powder bed fusion. Results showed that Ag reacted with Zn to form a "knot"-like AgZn3 phase. It had the same lattice structure (HCP) with Zn, which indicated a good lattice matching with the matrix, thus improving the dispersion of CNTs. More significantly, the knot played a "rivet" role and enhanced the load transfer capacity, which advantaged the CNT strengthening effects by assisting in transferring the load. Moreover, it enhanced the heterogeneous nucleation effects during solidification, which weakened the texture strength of the matrix and thus increased the ductility by improving the sliding capacity. The compressive yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, and elongation of the Zn-CNT@Ag implant were increased by 22, 26, and 17% in comparison to Zn-CNTs. Moreover, the Zn-CNT@Ag implant exhibited favorable antibacterial activity with a bacterial inhibition rate of 87.79%. Additionally, it also exhibited a suitable degradation rate and acceptable biocompatibility.
Keywords: dispersion; in situ reaction; interfacial bonding; mechanical strengths.