Corrosion Resistance of Titanium in Dentistry Applications

Overview

Titanium and its alloys is used in dentistry for excellent mechanical and the physical characteristics with high corrosion resistance and it seem to be one of the most appropriate materials for dental use at all. On the contrary to precious alloys, its suitable corrosion quality is gained throughout the process of passivation, i.e. formation of thin oxide layer on the surface, separating titanium from surrounding environment. At the same time, this fact represents general risk of corrosion damage in the locations of breakdown of passive layer, so local forms of corrosion cannot be excluded under unfavorable conditions. Another well-known characteristic is instability of the passive layer in the presence of fluorides. This article summarizes the set of works dedicated to the local forms of corrosion.

Key words:
titanium – passivation – corrosion – local forms of corrosion – ion release – free corrosion potential – potentiodynamic test – polarization resistance – fluorides