Development of Ti–In alloys by powder metallurgy for application as dental biomaterial.

Abstract

Substantial progress has been made in Ti alloys’ properties and chemical composition. However, the effect of porosity and indium content on biocompatibility and corrosion behavior has not been sufficiently studied. Indium (In) is a promising nontoxic element that can replace other toxic elements, while porosity is associated with a good biological response. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the achievability of three Ti–In alloys with 2.5, 5, and 10 wt.% Indium by powder metallurgy methods as dental prostheses. The findings of the present work showed that In acted as a grain refiner, and allowed us to obtain an 11.2-fold reduction for the Ti–10In sample than for the Ti–2.5In alloy. The total porosity of the Ti–In alloys decreased according to In content, however, grain size and In content showed a greater effect on the mechanical behavior in comparison with the effect of porosity, probably because of the low porosity percentage. All the mechanical values fell within the ranges accepted in the literature for dental implant applications. The Ti3+ and In3+ ion releases were below the toxic concentrations for the human body, with a maximum of 0.43 and 0.016 μg cm−2 h−1, respectively. Corrosion sensitivity decreased with In addition due to its surface protective effect on the Ti-matrix. These results proved that utilizing powder metallurgy methods, Ti–In alloys are feasible candidates for dental prosthesis. Of the three prepared Ti–In alloys, the Ti–10In alloy properties made it the most appropriate Ti–In alloy to be used as a dental implant.