The Effect of Porcelain Firing on Electrochemical Behavior of a Dental Alloy in Hydrogen Peroxide.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in electrochemical corrosion properties of porcelain firing simulated nickel-chromium dental casting alloy exposed to a 10% hydrogen peroxide bleaching agent. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The electrochemical corrosion behavior of a Ni-Cr alloy was evaluated by cyclic polarization test in the aerated electrolyte (pH = 6.5). Test groups were produced in as-cast (group 1, control group) and simulated porcelain firing (group 2: heat-treated/mean value; group 3: heat-treated/cycle) conditions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was also used to examine the alloy surfaces before and after the corrosion test. RESULTS: The ranking of the groups with respect to Ecorr and Icorr was as follows: 1, 2, 3 and 3, 1, 2, respectively. Group 3 exhibited the greatest and group 2 displayed the least corrosion tendencies. An increase in corrosion rates was observed after heat treatment/cycle state. Post-corrosion SEM photographs were also consistent with the test results. CONCLUSION: Within the parameters of this study, a single heat treatment is insufficient to cause upheaval in corrosion behavior of a Ni-Cr alloy subjected to 10% hydrogen peroxide.

Electrochemical corrosion and surface analyses of a ni-cr alloy in bleaching agents.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the corrosion behavior of a Ni-Cr dental casting alloy subjected to 10% hydrogen peroxide (HP) and 10% carbamide peroxide (CP) bleaching solutions and to determine the composition of the surface oxide layer formed on the alloy specimens. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten cylindrical specimens (4 mm in diameter × 25 mm in height) were cast from a Ni-Cr alloy (Wiron 99) and divided into two groups (n = 5). A potentiodynamic polarization test was used to compare the corrosion rates of specimens in HP and CP (pH = 6.5). Before cyclic polarization tests, all alloy specimens were allowed to reach a steady open circuit potential (Ecorr ) for a period of 1 hour. Then tests were initiated at 100 mV versus standard calomel electrode (SCE) below Ecorr and scanned at a rate of 1 mV/s in the anodic direction until reaching 1000 mV over the Ecorr value. The scan then was reversed back to the Ecorr of the specimens. The open circuit potentials (Ecorr ) and the current densities (Icorr ) were determined using the anodic Tafel regions extrapolating from the curves. Differences in Ecorr and Icorr were determined using one-way ANOVA (α = 0.05). In addition, corrosion rates were calculated from these curves. Before and after polarization tests, a scanning electron microscope (SEM) examination accompanied by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) was used to analyze the surface morphology. The surface characterization of the passive film formed on alloy specimens was also performed by using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). RESULTS: In this study, bleaching agents had an effect on the anodic process for two groups. Although no statistical difference was identified between the groups for both corrosion parameters, results indicated that the effect of CP on the corrosion behavior was less than that of HP. These results agreed with the SEM observations. XPS data showed that oxide layers formed on all groups contained mainly Cr2 O3 , NiO, and MoO3 , and the amounts of oxides formed on CP-treated specimens were higher than HP treated ones. Also, molybdenum rates were increased with CP application compared to HP. CONCLUSIONS: The comparison of the effects of the two bleaching agents at 10% showed that the alloy suffered less corrosion with CP than HP. This result was also confirmed by the SEM and XPS data. The presence of Mo on the oxide layer affected the oxide layer, leading to lower corrosion rates.

In vitro evaluation of the effect of a current bleaching agent on the electrochemical corrosion of dental alloys.

The nightguard bleaching of discoloured teeth is currently performed by using % 10 carbamide peroxide. While the material is effective on the bleaching of natural teeth, it may deteriorate crowns, bridges and amalgam restorations placed in the mouth. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of 10% carbamide peroxide on the electrochemical corrosion of various dental casting alloys used for fixed partial dentures and dental amalgam. Tafel extrapolation curves were obtained by the corrosion cell that facilitated simulation of the oral environment and comparison of the corrosion rates of alloys and amalgam was accomplished. The results revealed that unpolished amalgam and nickel-chromium alloy samples had the most and noble alloys had the least corrosion rate.