Elastic properties of alternative versus single-stranded leveling archwires.

The strength, stiffness, and range of single-stranded stainless steel (SS) and superelastic nickel-titanium (NiTi) archwires were compared with those of alternative leveling products, including nylon-coated and multistranded wires. Wire cross-sections were photographed after being potted in polymer, ground, and polished. Because the rectangular wires had rounded or beveled corners, gravimetric measurements and specific gravity calculations quantified the actual polygonal cross-sectional areas versus the ideal rectangular cross-sectional areas. Beveling reduced the cross-sectional areas by 7% to 8%; this decreased the wire stiffnesses by 15% to 19%. Using a testing machine, we measured the yield strengths, the elastic limits, and the ultimate tensile strengths in tension, and wire stiffnesses in 3-point bending. From cyclic loading tests, the elastic limits of the superelastic NiTi wires were approximately 90% and 45% of their ultimate tensile strengths for the round and rectangular wires, respectively. Using the measurements of the mechanical properties and geometric parameters of each wire, we computed the elastic property ratios (EPRs) versus a 16-mil (0.41 mm) NiTi wire. The single-stranded NiTi wires outperformed the alternative wires, whose EPRs varied from 0.05 to 0.32 for strength, from 0.11 to 1.55 for stiffness, and from 0.10 to 0.80 for range. Based on the current study and a review of the orthodontic literature, few superelastic wires are activated sufficiently in vivo to exhibit superelastic behavior. Therefore, the EPR data reported here for superelastic wires truly represent their performance in most clinical situations.