Evaluating the Mechanical Properties of Zinc-Coated Stainless Steel Orthodontic Wires Using Physical Vapor Deposition

Maryam Karandish; Mahmoud Pakshir; Milad Moghimi; Dana Jafarpour

doi:10.1155/2021/6651289

Evaluating the Mechanical Properties of Zinc-Coated Stainless Steel Orthodontic Wires Using Physical Vapor Deposition

Int J Dent. 2021 May 3:2021:6651289. doi: 10.1155/2021/6651289. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Maryam Karandish¹, Mahmoud Pakshir², Milad Moghimi³, Dana Jafarpour⁴

Affiliations

¹ Dept. of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
² Department of Materials Science and Engineering, School of Engineering, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.
³ Student Research Committee, School of Dentistry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
⁴ Biomaterials Research Center, School of Dentistry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the mechanical properties of stainless steel (SS) orthodontic wires coated with zinc (Zn), using a Physical Vapored Deposition (PVD) machine. A total of 100 straight SS orthodontic wires were cut into pieces of 5 centimeters in length and were divided into two groups. Half of the wires were coated with Zn using a PVD machine, and the others remained uncoated. Tensile strength (n = 15), three-point bending (n = 15), and frictional resistance at 0° (n = 10) and 10° (n = 10) were measured to compare the mechanical properties of the Zn-coated and uncoated orthodontic wires using the universal testing machine. The surface of the coated wires was observed by SEM and AFM. An independent t-test, multivariate ANOVA, and measurement ANOVA were used for data analysis. SEM and AFM showed a homogenous Zn layer of 0.28 ± 0.006 µm on the SS wires. The tensile strength and three-point bending strength significantly increased after Zn coating of wires with the PVD method (P < 0.05). The friction resistance significantly reduced at both angulations following the coating procedure. The angle between the wire and bracket had no significant effect on the frictional resistance (P > 0.05). Coating with Zn improved the tensile and load-bending strength of SS orthodontic wires and reduced their frictional resistance which might be advantageous in terms of reducing the risk of root resorption during the orthodontic treatment.