Effects of fluoride and dissolved oxygen concentrations on the corrosion behavior of pure titanium and titanium alloys.

The effects of dissolved-oxygen concentration and fluoride concentration on the corrosion behaviors of commercial pure titanium, Ti-6Al-4V and Ti-6Al-7Nb alloys and experimentally produced Ti-0.2Pd and Ti-0.5Pt alloys were examined using the corrosion potential measurements. The amount of dissolved Ti was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy. A decrease in the dissolved-oxygen concentration tended to reduce the corrosion resistance of Ti and Ti alloys. If there was no fluoride, however, corrosion did not occur. Under low dissolved-oxygen conditions, the corrosion of pure Ti and Ti-6Al-4V and Ti-6Al-7Nb alloys might easily take place in the presence of small amounts of fluoride. They were corroded by half or less of the fluoride concentrations in commercial dentifrices. The Ti-0.2Pd and Ti-0.5Pt alloys did not corrode more, even under the low dissolved-oxygen conditions and a fluoride-containing environment, than pure Ti and Ti-6Al-4V and Ti-6Al-7Nb alloys. These alloys are expected to be useful as new Ti alloys with high corrosion resistance in dental use.