The corrosion resistance of orthodontic wire composed of SS 18/8 alloy in artificial saliva in the presence of certain candies

• A. Grace Baby^1,2, A.N. Senthilkumar¹ and S. Rajendran²

¹ PG and Research Department of Chemistry, Alagappa Govt. Arts College, Karaikudi – 630 003, Affiliated to Alagappa University, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu, India
² Corrosion Research Centre, St Antony’s College of Arts and Sciences, Dindigul, India (Affiliated to Mother Teresa Women’s University, Kodaikanal, India)

Abstract: Teeth that are properly aligned are considered appealing; however, some individuals naturally have misaligned teeth. To address this issue, orthodontists utilize wires. Following the placement of the wires, patients consume a variety of foods, drinks, and medications orally, which may affect the longevity of the wires. Additionally, the wires are susceptible to corrosion when exposed to saliva. This study examined the corrosion resistance of orthodontic wires made from SS 18/8 alloy in artificial saliva, both with and without the inclusion of specific candies, using a polarization analysis. The corrosion characteristics of the SS 18/8 alloy were evaluated for the following systems: Artificial Saliva (AS) system and Artificial Saliva combined with candies 1 to 7. The study involved measuring Linear Polarization Resistance (LPR) and corrosion current values. The results of the research produced the following findings. The ranking of corrosion resistance in SS 18/8 alloy orthodontic wire is as follows: AS+candy 6 > AS+candy 4 > AS+candy 2 > AS+candy 1 > AS+candy 7 > AS+candy 3 > AS+candy 5 > AS. This indicates that individuals using SS 18/8 alloy Orthodontic wire can consume all the candies (1 to 7) under examination. For the system with greater corrosion resistance (AS+candy 6) and the system with the smallest corrosion resistance (AS+candy 5), SEM images and contact angle measurements were recorded.

Keywords: corrosion resistance, orthodontic wire, SS 18/8 alloy, artificial saliva, candies, polarisation study

Int. J. Corros. Scale Inhib., 2026, 15, no. 1, 492-507
doi: 10.17675/2305-6894-2026-15-1-25

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