{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,9]],"date-time":"2026-10-09T04:49:53Z","timestamp":1791521393105,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":26,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"19","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1790640000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Materials"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Co\u2013Cr alloys are widely used in biomedical devices owing to their excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance; however, sustained metal-ion release in physiological environments remains an important materials concern. Low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD) enables the formation of conformal ceramic barriers that can restrict long-term metal-ion transport. In this study, nominally ~50 nm ALD-derived ZrO2 coatings were deposited on Co\u2013Cr substrates manufactured by investment casting (CAST), CAD\/CAM milling (MILLED), and laser powder bed fusion (PRINTED). The coatings were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy with selected-area electron diffraction (TEM\/SAED), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), while the electrochemical response was evaluated by open-circuit potential (OCP) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Long-term barrier performance was quantified by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) as cumulative Co and Cr release for all manufacturing routes and Mo release for the Mo-containing CAST and PRINTED alloys after 28 days in artificial saliva at 37 \u00b0C. ZrO2 deposition reduced cumulative Co and Cr release for all manufacturing routes. Mo release was also reduced in the Mo-containing alloys, with Mo remaining below the analytical detection limit (&lt;0.005 \u00b5g cm\u22122) for the PRINTED + ZrO2 system. Electrochemical measurements further demonstrated manufacturing-route-dependent differences in barrier response between the initial and 28-day exposure states. Overall, the findings establish a structure\u2013barrier\u2013release framework linking coating formation and electrochemical response with cumulative ion release, and identify 28-day cumulative ion release as a practical functional descriptor for comparing the long-term performance of ALD-derived ceramic barriers on Co\u2013Cr alloys.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ma19194173","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T17:19:08Z","timestamp":1790702348000},"page":"4173","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Structure\u2013Barrier\u2013Release Relationships of Low-Temperature ALD ZrO2 Thin Films on Co\u2013Cr Alloys: Reducing Long-Term Co and Cr Ion Release in Artificial Saliva"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"19","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9002-517X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anna","family":"Zi\u0119bowicz","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-5329-569X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Wiktoria","family":"Groelich","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anita","family":"Kajzer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9285-1272","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Wojciech","family":"Kajzer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Marta","family":"Kiel-Jamrozik","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-2017-4098","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Julia","family":"Kolasa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Julia","family":"Liso\u0144-Kubica","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4729-8719","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Katarzyna","family":"Nowi\u0144ska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Electrical Engineering and Industrial Automation, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0168-7508","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ada","family":"Or\u0142owska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4493-8258","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Zbigniew","family":"Paszenda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-5180-5269","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gabriela","family":"Wielgus","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8093-4978","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Agnieszka","family":"Anto\u0144czyk","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Artificial Intelligence in Dentistry Science, Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, 41-808 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7330-6447","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Witold","family":"Walke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 41-800 Zabrze, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9407-7129","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Bogus\u0142aw","family":"Zi\u0119bowicz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Engineering Materials and Biomaterials, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"223","DOI":"10.1016\/S0022-3913(00)80016-5","article-title":"Biocompatibility of Dental Casting Alloys: A Review","volume":"83","author":"Wataha","year":"2000","journal-title":"J. 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