Studies of Ti alloys for dental castings

Casting of Ti has been recently investigated in dentistry. The purpose of this study was to examine the alloying effect on the cast Ti. Metallurgical structures, mechanical properties, and in vitro corrosion resistance were, therefore, studied for cast Ti and for four selected cast Ti alloys such as Ti-6AI-4V, Ti-15V, Ti-20Cu, and Ti-30Pd. A "Castmatic" dental casting machine was utilized, which involved argon-arc melting and subsequent argon/vacuum-pressurized casting. The photomicrographs revealed quite large grains in the cast structures. XRD analyses on cast Ti metals showed the quasi-equilibrium phases present. The strength of cast Ti could be significantly increased by alloying. Cross-sectional microhardness measurements of cast Ti alloys showed U-type hardness distribution due to the surface mold reaction. All the cast Ti alloys examined showed a strong passivity trend in the corrosion test. The present results suggest that cast Ti alloys have promising features for future dental uses.