In vitro corrosion of dental Au-based casting alloys in polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine solution.

The corrosion and tarnish behaviors of two Au-based casting alloys (ISO type 1 and type 4 Au alloys) and their constituent pure metals, Au, Ag, Cu, Pt, and Pd in a polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine solution were examined. The two Au alloys actively corroded, and the main anodic reaction for both was dissolution of Au as AuI₂(-). The amount of Au released from the ISO type 1 Au alloy was significantly larger than that from the ISO type 4 Au alloy (P<0.05). Visible light spectrophotometry revealed that the type 1 alloy exhibited higher susceptibility to tarnishing than the type 4 alloy. The corrosion forms of the two Au alloys were found to be completely different, i.e., the type 1 alloy exhibited the corrosion attack over the entire exposed surface with a little irregularity whereas the type 4 alloy exhibited typical intergranular corrosion, which was caused by local cells produced by segregation of Pd and Pt.