Orthodontic Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Orthodontic, including details on braces, retainers, treatment.

Laser welding of NiTi orthodontic archwires for selective force application.

Sevilla P, Martorell F, Libenson C, Planell JA, Gil FJ

CREB, Dept. Ciencia de los Materiales e Ingeniería Metalúrgica, ETSEIB, Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña, Av. Diagonal 647, Barcelona, 08028, Spain.

Conventional superelastic orthodontic wires are arch-shaped, have the same mechanical properties all along their length and are used to correct the position of teeth. The disadvantage of these archwires is that there are different types of teeth in the mouth and different forces are therefore needed to rectify their position. The aim of this work was to laser weld several types of NiTi orthodontic wires that had different chemical compositions and superelastic properties, in order to adjust their properties to different parts of the mouth. Microstructural changes, transformation stresses and temperatures, variations in corrosion behaviour and ion release were studied in the welded wires.

Published 7 February 2008 in J Mater Sci Mater Med, 19(2): 525-9.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2005-2008 Orthodontic Research Today. All Rights Reserved.