Surface treatment by plasma carbonitriding of Ti-6Al-4V alloy for dental implants

Abstract

In recent years, intensive development of dentistry stimulates the demand for new titanium implant materials created by surface engineering. Plasma nitriding is proposed as a solution to improve the biocompatibility. This work investigated the influence of plasma carbonitriding on the roughness and contact angle of Ti6Al4V treated in a Ar / N 2 / CH 4 plasma for 3 h and 6 h at 600 °C. The characterization was made by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Theta Lite Optical Tensiometer, and laser confocal microscopy. The XRD results indicated the formation of Ti 3 N 1.29 and Ti 2 N phase. It was observed that the surface roughness increases from 0.24 to 0.87 μm after 3 h and from 0.24 to 1.09 μm after 6 h of carbonitriding. The contact angle was 38° and 30° for 3 h and 6 h, respectively.