Wear behavior of tetragonal zirconia polycrystal versus titanium and titanium alloy

The aim of this study was to clarify the influence of tetragonal zirconia polycrystal (TZP) on the two-body wear behavior of titanium (Ti). Two-body wear tests were performed using TZP, two grades of cp-Ti or Ti alloy in distilled water, and the cross-sectional area of worn surfaces was measured to evaluate the wear behavior. In addition, the surface hardness and coefficient of friction were determined and an electron probe microanalysis performed to investigate the underlying mechanism of wear. The hardness of TZP was much greater than that of Ti. The coefficient of friction between Ti and Ti showed a higher value than the Ti/TZP combination. Ti was more susceptible to wear by both TZP and Ti than TZP, indicating that the mechanism of wear between TZP and Ti was abrasive wear, whereas that between Ti and Ti was adhesive wear. No remarkable difference in the amount of wear in Ti was observed between TZP and Ti as the opposite material, despite the hardness value of Ti being much smaller than that of TZP.