Titanium is commonly used in oral implantology. Its
properties fulfil the necessary biocompatibility requirements for endosseus
implants. Titanium
is also used for coupling bars that connect different implants
in multi-implant prosthetic solutions which are very common
in clinical practice for the treatment of partial edentulous
or total edentulous patients.
The function of a bar connecting two or more implants is to
allow an optimal distribution of occlusal loads among the
different implants, ensuring also a good distribution
in the peri-implant bone tissue. Geometrical precision is one of the main requirements for coupling bars, since misfits between bars and implants can induce critical stress statea both on the prosthetic system and, above all, on the bone tissue.
One of the processes used for manufacturing titanium bars
is casting.
Mechanical performance of
a device can be largely affected by inappropriate manufacturing. Numerical methods, such as CVM, offer an efficient tool for
the analysis of casting processes, in order to study the effects of the different process parameters
on the final quality of the cast. Numerical analyses can be used to optimise the casting procedure, to obtain better control on the quality of the microstructure and mechanical properties of the material, contributing to lowering the percentage of rejects. Numerical simulations can also be used to make an a priori evaluation of the production feasibility of titanium devices through casting.
Numerical
Analysis of the Casting Process
