β-Ti Alloys for Orthopedic and Dental Applications: A Review of Progress on Improvement of Properties through Surface Modification

Abstract

Ti and Ti alloys have charming comprehensive properties (high specific strength, strong corrosion resistance, and excellent biocompatibility) that make them the ideal choice in orthopedic and dental applications, especially in the particular fabrication of orthopedic and dental implants. However, these alloys present some shortcomings, specifically elastic modulus, wear, corrosion, and biological performance. Beta-titanium (β-Ti) alloys have been studied as low elastic modulus and low toxic or non-toxic elements. The present work summarizes the improvements of the properties systematically (elastic modulus, hardness, wear resistance, corrosion resistance, antibacterial property, and bone regeneration) for β-Ti alloys via surface modification to address these shortcomings. Additionally, the shortcomings and prospects of the present research are put forward. β-Ti alloys have potential regarding implants in biomedical fields.

Latest Trends in Surface Modification for Dental Implantology: Innovative Developments and Analytical Applications

“…Many brand devices have been developed (e.g., TiOblast ® , Osseotite ® , Steri-Oss Etched ® , TiUnite ® , ITI-TPS ® , Laser-Lok ® , SLActive ® ) [2], in order to improve the effectiveness of the dental implants and their rate of success. Besides, recent developments including a variety of surface modifications for dental implantology have been made to cope with the fact of being biologically inert, such as acid etching/grit blasting, hydrogen peroxide or acidic treatment, alternative nitride, hydroxyapatite or metal-based coatings among others [40][41][42][43][44][45].…”

Potential of titanium based alloys in the biomedical sector and their surface modification techniques: A review

“…The important benefits, limitations, and applications of some Ti-alloys are compiled in Table 5. 53 Despite having numerous applications in the biomedical sector, Ti and its alloys are regarded as bio-inert at extremely high temperatures. As a result, they never form joints with the natural tissues (rigid and fragile) whenever located in biological environments.…”

“…Few researchers proposed a technique to maintain an appropriate value of elastic modulus by developing the material’s microstructures, such as portrayed in Figure 6. 53 They concluded that improvement in hardness, without compromising other qualities of the material, can easily be achieved through β-Ti alloys. 54,55 Biodegradability is another factor which promotes the practice of titanium alloys in many pharmaceutical applications.…”

“…Figure 6. Material's microstructure development by varying elastic modulus value, reprinted with permission from Shao et al53 …”

Thermal based surface modification techniques for enhancing the corrosion and wear resistance of metallic implants: A review

“…The Young's modulus of commercially pure titanium or Ti-6Al-4V alloys is approximately 110 GPa [22]. In contrast, that of β-Ti alloys is reduced even further at around 50 GPa [31]. This makes these alloys the closest match in terms of mechanical properties to the bone when compared to the other metals discussed in this review.…”