The estimation of corrosion behaviour of ZrTi binary alloys for dental applications using electrochemical techniques

Titanium and zirconium are in the same group in the periodic table of elements and are known to have similar physical and chemical properties. Both Ti and Zr usually have their surfaces covered by a thin oxide film spontaneously formed in air. However, the cytotoxicity of ZrO₂ is lower than that of TiO₂ rutile. Treatments with fluoride are known as the main methods to prevent plaque formation and dental caries. The corrosion behaviour of ZrTi alloys with Ti contents of 5, 25 and 45 wt.% and cp-Ti was investigated for dental applications. All samples were tested by linear potentiodynamic polarisation and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) performed in artificial saliva with different pH levels (5.6 and 3.4) and different fluoride (1000 ppm F⁻) and albumin protein (0.6%) contents. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was employed to observe the surface morphology of the test materials after linear potentiodynamic polarisation. The corrosion current densities for the ZrTi alloys increased with the titanium content. The Zr5Ti and Zr25Ti alloys were susceptible to localised corrosion. The role that Ti plays as an alloying element is that of increasing the resistance of ZrTi alloy to localised corrosion. The presence of 0.6% albumin protein in fluoridated acidified artificial saliva with 1000 ppm F⁻ could protect the cp-Ti and ZrTi alloys from attack by fluoride ions.