{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]],"date-time":"2026-03-02T16:19:57Z","timestamp":1772468397787,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]],"date-time":"2026-03-02T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1772409600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Biomimetics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The long-term performance of metallic biomaterials in the oral environment is strongly influenced by their interaction with saliva and its variable chemical conditions. In this study, the biomimetic behavior of a Zr-2.5Nb alloy was investigated during immersion in artificial saliva with acidic, neutral, and alkaline pH for a period of 28 days, aiming to simulate diverse physiological and pathological oral conditions. The evolution of saliva pH was continuously monitored throughout the immersion period to assess the dynamic material\u2013environment interactions. Surface morphology, elemental composition, and chemical structure were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM\/EDX) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), while corrosion resistance was evaluated through electrochemical measurements. The results revealed distinct pH-dependent surface responses, with acidic saliva promoting localized surface modifications and increased corrosion susceptibility, whereas neutral conditions favored the formation of stable and protective passive layers, and alkaline environments promoted the development of chemically complex surface layers that exhibited initial stabilization but underwent progressive degradation during long-term exposure. Overall, the Zr-2.5Nb alloy demonstrated a high degree of corrosion resistance and chemical stability, particularly under neutral and alkaline conditions, supporting its suitability for dental and oral biomedical applications. These findings provide a biomimetic perspective on pH-driven surface adaptation and long-term corrosion behavior, highlighting how dynamic material\u2013environment interactions govern the performance of zirconium-based biomaterials in complex oral environments.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/biomimetics11030176","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]],"date-time":"2026-03-02T14:55:01Z","timestamp":1772463301000},"page":"176","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Biomimetic Response of Zr-2.5Nb Alloy to Artificial Saliva with Variable pH: Corrosion Behavior and Surface Adaptation"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"11","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3650-1021","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Viorica","family":"Ghisman","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Interdisciplinary Research Centre in the Field of Eco-Nano Technology and Advance Materials CC-ITI, Faculty of Engineering, \u201cDunarea de Jos\u201d University of Galati, 47 Domneasca, 800008 Galati, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3278-3412","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nicoleta","family":"Bogatu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Interdisciplinary Research Centre in the Field of Eco-Nano Technology and Advance Materials CC-ITI, Faculty of Engineering, \u201cDunarea de Jos\u201d University of Galati, 47 Domneasca, 800008 Galati, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Elena Emanuela","family":"Herbei","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Interdisciplinary Research Centre in the Field of Eco-Nano Technology and Advance Materials CC-ITI, Faculty of Engineering, \u201cDunarea de Jos\u201d University of Galati, 47 Domneasca, 800008 Galati, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8635-6678","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alina Crina","family":"Muresan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Interdisciplinary Research Centre in the Field of Eco-Nano Technology and Advance Materials CC-ITI, Faculty of Engineering, \u201cDunarea de Jos\u201d University of Galati, 47 Domneasca, 800008 Galati, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7787-8776","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Daniela Laura","family":"Buruiana","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Interdisciplinary Research Centre in the Field of Eco-Nano Technology and Advance Materials CC-ITI, Faculty of Engineering, \u201cDunarea de Jos\u201d University of Galati, 47 Domneasca, 800008 Galati, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8","DOI":"10.1016\/j.matdes.2013.07.008","article-title":"Novel b-type Zr\u2013Mo\u2013Ti alloys for biological hard tissue replacements","volume":"53","author":"Nie","year":"2014","journal-title":"Mater. Des."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"357","DOI":"10.1016\/j.dental.2007.06.003","article-title":"Zirconium oxide coating improves implant osseointegration in vivo","volume":"24","author":"Sollazzo","year":"2008","journal-title":"Dent. Mater."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1033","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actbio.2009.09.013","article-title":"Microstructure and magnetic susceptibility of as-cast Zr\u2013Mo alloys","volume":"6","author":"Suyalatu","year":"2010","journal-title":"Acta Biomater."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2466","DOI":"10.2320\/matertrans.M2009187","article-title":"Effects of Phase Constitution of Zr-Nb Alloys on their Magnetic Susceptibilities","volume":"50","author":"Nomura","year":"2009","journal-title":"Mater. Trans."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Niinomi, M., Narushima, T., and Nakai, M. (2015). Advances in Metallic Biomaterials: Tissues, Materials and Biological Reactions, Springer.","DOI":"10.1007\/978-3-662-46836-4"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1709","DOI":"10.3390\/ma7031709","article-title":"New Developments of Ti-Based Alloys for Biomedical Applications","volume":"7","author":"Li","year":"2014","journal-title":"Materials"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4278","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actbio.2011.07.020","article-title":"Microstructure and mechanical properties of as-cast Zr\u2013Nb alloys","volume":"7","author":"Kondo","year":"2011","journal-title":"Acta Biomater."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"851","DOI":"10.1016\/j.msec.2012.02.002","article-title":"Microstructure, corrosion behavior and cytotoxicity of Zr\u2013Nb alloys for biomedical application","volume":"32","author":"Zhou","year":"2012","journal-title":"Mater. Sci. Eng. C"},{"key":"ref_9","unstructured":"(2005). Standard Specification for Wrought Zirconium-2.5niobium Alloy for Surgical Implant Applications. Annual Book of ASTM Standards (Standard No. ASTM-F2384-05)."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"299","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmst.2013.12.006","article-title":"A comparative in vitro study on biomedical Zr\u20132.5X (X = Nb, Sn) alloys","volume":"30","author":"Zhou","year":"2014","journal-title":"J. Mater. Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5795","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actbio.2012.10.046","article-title":"Effect of cold rolling on the magnetic susceptibility of Zr\u201314Nb alloy","volume":"9","author":"Kondo","year":"2013","journal-title":"Acta Biomater."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"221","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1744-7402.2005.02025.x","article-title":"Oxidation microstructures and interfaces in the oxidized zirconium knee","volume":"2","author":"Hobbs","year":"2005","journal-title":"Int. J. Appl. Ceram. Technol."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"269","DOI":"10.1016\/j.knee.2008.12.010","article-title":"Increased force simulator wear testing of a zirconium oxide total knee arthroplasty","volume":"16","author":"Lee","year":"2009","journal-title":"Knee"},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"878","DOI":"10.1016\/j.apsusc.2012.11.140","article-title":"In vitro corrosion behavior and cellular response of thermally oxidized Zr\u20133Sn alloy","volume":"265","author":"Zhou","year":"2013","journal-title":"Appl. Surf. Sci."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"223","DOI":"10.3103\/S1068375525700115","article-title":"Structure and corrosion resistance of Zr\u20131% Nb and Zr\u20132.5% Nb alloys after equal-channel angular pressing","volume":"61","author":"Alsheikh","year":"2025","journal-title":"Surf. Eng. Appl. Electrochem."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e41834","DOI":"10.1016\/j.heliyon.2025.e41834","article-title":"Effect of different crystalline directions on the mechanical properties and processing maps of Zr\u2013Nb alloy for orthopedic applications","volume":"11","author":"Rajaee","year":"2025","journal-title":"Heliyon"},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Neaga, V., Benea, L., and Axente, E.R. (2022). Corrosion Assessment of Zr2.5Nb Alloy in Ringer\u2019s Solution by Electrochemical Methods. Appl. Sci., 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/app12167976"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Buruiana, D.L., Bogatu, N.L., Muresan, A.C., Herbei, E.E., Trus, C., and Ghisman, V. (2025). Evaluating the impact of artificial saliva formulations on stainless steel integrity. Appl. Sci., 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/app15105345"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Benea, L., Neaga, V., Bogatu, L., and Axente, E. (2025). Monitoring and evaluation of corrosion at the interface of zirconium alloy biomaterials under simulated oxidative biological environment. Int. J. Mol. Sci., 26.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms262110537"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Kakaa, F., Ferkhi, M., Khaled, A., Amira, S., and Eyraud, M. (2025). Corrosion Behavior of Electrochemical and Thermal Treated Titanium into Artificial Saliva: Effect of pH and Fluoride Concentration. Corros. Mater. Degrad., 6.","DOI":"10.20944\/preprints202507.2325.v1"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"755","DOI":"10.4012\/dmj.2024-158","article-title":"Corrosion behavior of Zr\u201314Nb\u20135Ta\u20131Mo alloy in simulated body fluid","volume":"43","author":"Manaka","year":"2024","journal-title":"Dent. Mater. J."}],"container-title":["Biomimetics"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2313-7673\/11\/3\/176\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]],"date-time":"2026-03-02T15:33:05Z","timestamp":1772465585000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2313-7673\/11\/3\/176"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]]},"references-count":21,"journal-issue":{"issue":"3","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3]]}},"alternative-id":["biomimetics11030176"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/biomimetics11030176","relation":{},"ISSN":["2313-7673"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2313-7673","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]]}}}