Basic Research—Technology
Cyclic Fatigue of Reciproc and Reciproc Blue
Nickel-titanium Reciprocating Files at Different
Environmental Temperatures
Gianluca Plotino, DDS, PhD,* Nicola M. Grande, DDS, PhD,† Luca Testarelli, DDS, PhD,*
Gianluca Gambarini, MD, DDS,* Raffaella Castagnola, DDS,‡ Andrea Rossetti, DDS,‡
€ urek, DDS, PhD,§ Massimo Cordaro, MD, DDS,‡ and Leonzio Fortunato, MD, DDS†
Taha Ozy€
Abstract
Introduction: The aim of the present study was to
investigate the impact of ambient temperature on the
life span of nickel-titanium (NiTi) files. Methods: Cyclic
fatigue testing of NiTi instruments was performed in a
stainless steel artificial canal. During the experiment, 4
different temperatures (0 C, 20 C, 35 C, and 39 C)
were used in a thermostatic bath controlled using elec-
tronic and infrared controls. Eighty R25 Reciproc Blue
(VDW, Munich, Germany) and 80 R25 Reciproc (VDW)
instruments were reciprocated in the artificial canal until
fracture occurred, and the time to fracture and the
length of the fractured fragment were recorded. The
phase transformation temperature for 3 instruments of
each type was analyzed by differential scanning calorim-
etry. One-way analysis of variance and Bonferroni tests
were used to statistically analyze the data at a 5% sig-
nificance level (P < .05). Results: Reciproc Blue instru-
ments were significantly more resistant to cyclic fatigue
than Reciproc at all the temperatures tested (P < .05).
Fatigue resistance was proportionally higher as the envi-
ronmental temperature decreased (0 C > 20 C >
35 C > 39 C). No significant difference was registered
for the length of the fractured fragment of both instru-
ments tested at all temperatures tested (P > .05). Con-
clusions: Blue alloy significantly increases the cyclic
fatigue resistance of Reciproc files compared with M-
Wire alloy. Temperature significantly affects the life
span of NiTi files. When the ambient temperature in-
creases between 0 C and 35 C, the fatigue resistance
of the files statistically decreases. (J Endod 2018;-
:1–4)
Key Words
Ambient temperature, cyclic fatigue resistance, heat
treatment, instruments, nickel-titanium
From the *Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Science, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy; †Department of Health Sciences, School of Dentistry, Magna Graecia
University, Catanzaro, Italy; ‡Department of Endodontics, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy; and §Department of Endodontics, _Istanbul Medeniyet Uni-
versity, Faculty of Dentistry, Tuzla, _Istanbul.
Address requests for reprints to Dr Gianluca Plotino, Via Calabria 25, 00197, Rome, Italy. E-mail address: endo@gianlucaplotino.com
0099-2399/$ - see front matter
Copyright ª 2018 American Association of Endodontists.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joen.2018.06.006
JOE — Volume -, Number -, - 2018
A fter the initial investi-
gation on nickel-
titanium (NiTi) files by
Significance
Environmental temperature has been shown to be
a significant variable in influencing the cyclic fa-
Walia et al (1), the use of
tigue resistance of NiTi instruments. A clinical strat-
NiTi rotary files has deeply
egy that may improve the life span of endodontic
changed the clinical pro-
instruments, such as warming them up or cooling
cedures related to the
them down directly during clinical practice, should
root canal preparation
be introduced.
phase of endodontic treat-
ment (2–4). An important
limitation of NiTi files is represented by the possibility to break unexpectedly (5, 6). The
production method (alloy type/thermomechanical treatments) (7, 8), design of
the instruments (9), and movement kinematics (10–12) are constantly updated by
the manufacturers in order to reduce the incidence of instrument separation.
One of the most important technical advancements in the production of mechan-
ical files is represented by the introduction of different thermal treatments of the NiTi
alloy. They help to improve the mechanical properties of endodontic instruments, such
as fatigue resistance, flexibility, cutting efficiency, and canal centering ability (13–17).
This new generation of instruments undergoes complex heating-cooling proprietary
treatments to optimize the crystallographic phase of the files and transformation
behavior of NiTi alloy (8, 18), moving it closer to the body temperature (8, 19). It
creates a shape memory alloy that is claimed to increase the mechanical properties
of the instruments (15, 20).
After the first generation of Reciproc M-Wire files (VDW, Munich, Germany), Re-
ciproc Blue files (VDW) were developed in the last years with a proprietary advanced
metallurgy through heat treatment technology that results in a visible blue titanium oxide
layer on the surface of the instrument and improves their flexibility and resistance to
fatigue (15, 17). The Reciproc files made in M-Wire are in the austenite phase
during clinical use; the material is quite hard, strong, and not prebendable. The
Reciproc Blue files are in the martensite phase during clinical use; the material is
soft, ductile, and can easily be precurved (8, 20). The transformation temperature
between the austenitic and martensitic phases for instruments made with the Blue
alloy was measured just below body temperature (21, 22).
Most of the previous studies compared the cyclic fatigue resistance of mechanical
NiTi files at room temperature, but clinically the intracanal temperature at which the
instruments are used is around 35 C (23). Recent studies have already shown that
Cyclic Fatigue at Different Temperatures 1
Basic Research—Technology
ambient temperature may drastically affect the fatigue resistance of NiTi
instruments (16, 18, 21), but no one compared the cyclic fatigue
between Reciproc and Reciproc Blue instruments at different
environmental temperatures. The aim of the present study was to
evaluate the influence of different environmental temperatures on the
flexural cyclic fatigue resistance of NiTi instruments, to compare
Reciproc Blue with M-Wire Reciproc instruments, and to correlate
the results with their transformation temperatures.
Materials and Methods
Cyclic Fatigue Test
Twenty R25 Reciproc and Reciproc Blue files consisting of iden-
tical instruments with a 0.25-mm tip size and a variable taper (.08 at
the tip to .04 at the shaft) were submitted to a cyclic fatigue test in a water
bath at 0 C  1 C, 20 C  1  C (room temperature), 35 C  1  C
(expected intracanal temperature), and 39 C  1 C, resulting in a total
of 160 new instruments.
Using a stereomicroscope (Labomed Prima DNT; Labo America
Inc, Fremont, CA), all the files were examined at 20 magnification
for defects or deformations before the cyclic fatigue test. No defects
were detected; thus, all the files were subjected to the static cyclic fatigue
test using an experimental device already described in previous studies
(5, 9, 16). Some modifications were necessary in order to conduct the
test in a liquid water-based media. A thermostatic bath containing elec-
tronic and infrared controls was added to the setup to ensure the pre-
cision of the different temperatures at which the instruments were been
tested. The liquid was inserted in the water container already at the
desired temperature and maintained at the established  C  1 C for
the duration of the test; it was measured with an infrared thermometer.
All the instruments were operated by using a 6:1 reduction hand-
piece (Sirona Dental Systems GmbH, Bensheim, Germany) powered by
an endodontic motor (Reciproc Gold, VDW) using the specific move-
ment suggested for the Reciproc files (“Reciproc All” program). Instru-
ments were rotated freely until fracture occurred in a simulated root
canal with an angle and radius of the curvature of 60 and 5 mm,
respectively, and the center of the curve at 6 mm from its apical end.
The time to fracture (TtF) was recorded and registered in seconds
for each file to the nearest whole number by means of a 1/100-second
chronometer. The fragment length (FL) was also registered with a mi-
crocaliper (Mitutoyo Italiana srl, Lainate, Italy) to evaluate the precise
positioning of the instruments tested.
The mean values and standard deviations were then calculated,
and data were statistically analyzed using SPSS 21.0 software (IBM, Ar-
monk, NY). The Shapiro-Wilk test indicated that the TtF and FL data
were normally distributed, whereas the Levene test indicated the homo-
geneity of variance. One-way analysis of variance and Bonferroni tests
for multiple comparisons among groups were used to statistically
analyze the data at a 5% significance level (P < .05).
Differential Scanning Calorimetric Analysis
The apical 3–4 mm of the files used for the differential scanning
calorimetric (DSC) analysis were cut using wire cutters. Three speci-
mens from each group were placed in an open aluminum pan to be sub-
jected to the test.
DSC analysis was performed for both groups at the following tem-
peratures: 20 C, 40 C, and 60 C up to 100 C (Perkin Elmer
Jade Series DSC; PerkinElmer, Shelton, CT). During each analysis, the
heating rate was 10 C/min, and dry nitrogen at a rate of 20 mL/min
was used. To detect the phase transformation temperatures and the
enthalpy changes of the processes, plots were analyzed using PYRIS
computer software (PerkinElmer). The austenitic transformation start-
ing and finishing points were determined.
Results
The mean ( standard deviation) of the TtF and FL for Reciproc
and Reciproc Blue at the different temperatures tested are shown in
Table 1. Reciproc Blue instruments showed a statistically significant
higher fatigue resistance than Reciproc at all the temperatures consid-
ered (P < .05).
A statistical difference was also found among all the temperatures
for both file types tested (P < .05), except between 35 C and
39 C (P > .05). Fatigue resistance was proportionally higher as the
environmental temperature decreased (0 C > 20 C > 35 C >39 C),
with differences ranging from 35%–421%. There were no statistically
significant differences with respect to the FL for both the instruments
tested at all the temperatures tested (P > .05).
Results from the DSC analysis are displayed in Figure 1 and
Table 2. A homogeneous thermal transformation was found for all
the instruments tested, showing repeatable DSC scans. The 2 different
instruments analyzed displayed different transformation temperatures.
Discussion
In the present study, the mean length of the fractured tips was not
significantly different among the groups. In agreement with previous
studies (24–27), this finding confirms that the tested instruments
were positioned correctly in the artificial canal curvature and faced
similar stress during the experiment, thus ensuring sufficient
standardization (5).

TABLE 1. Mean, Standard Deviation (SD), and Confidence Interval (CI) of the Time to Fracture (TtF) in Seconds and the Fragment Length (FL) in Millimeters of
Reciproc Blue and Reciproc Instruments at the Different Temperatures Tested ( C) and the Percentage Increase in Cyclic Fatigue for Each Group (D%)
0 C 20 C 35 C 39 C
TtF (s) FL (mm) TtF (s) FL (mm) TtF (s) FL (mm) TtF (s) FL (mm)
Reciproc Blue
Mean 544ax 6.4ax 395bx 6.3ax 191cx 6.7ax 141cx 6.7ax
SD 38 0.7 20 0.4 51 0.5 46 0.7
95% CI 527/562 6.4/7.0 359/389 6.0/6.3 167/214 6.4/6.9 110/171 6.4/7.0
D% 286 180 35
Reciproc
Mean 400ay 6.1ax 150by 6.5ax 106cy 6.3ax 77cy 6.2ax
SD 30 1 14 0.5 35 0.6 20 0.4
95% CI 368/432 5.4/6.3 140/159 6.3/6.6 90/122 6.0/6.5 69/85 6.1/6.4
D% 421 95 38
Different superscript letters indicate a statistically significant difference (P < .05) (a, b, and c for rows and x and y for columns).

2 Plotino et al. JOE — Volume -, Number -, - 2018

 Basic Research—Technology

Figure 1. DSC curves at –20 C (red), –40 C (blue), and –60 C (green) obtained from the (A) Reciproc and (B) Reciproc Blue NiTi specimens tested.

According to previously published studies, the cyclic fatigue resis-
tance of NiTi files significantly increases when reciprocation motion is
used (11, 28). The TtF has been used in the present study to evaluate the
fatigue life of the files instead of the number of cycles to fracture, which
is normally used in similar investigations. In fact, the number of cycles
to fracture cannot be rigorously determined for reciprocating files
rotating in both clockwise and counterclockwise directions (10, 29).
The present study showed that Reciproc Blue presented a statisti-
cal increase in fatigue life compared with Reciproc files, independent of
the temperature tested, which is in accordance with a previous study in
which Reciproc Blue presented a significantly higher flexibility and
resistance to the accumulation of metal fatigue than Reciproc (17).
Furthermore, the present study is in agreement with other previous
studies that reported that alloys containing a higher percentage of
martensite at ambient temperature (eg, CM, Gold, and Blue) are
more resistant to cyclic fatigue (13, 15, 16, 20, 30–32).
According to the results of the present study, as the environmental
temperature at which the instruments were tested decreased, the cyclic
fatigue resistance of the NiTi files increased. These findings are similar
to those of previous studies reporting that environmental temperature
strongly influences the mechanical properties of NiTi files (16, 18,
21). Furthermore, statistically significant differences were found
among all the temperatures tested for both the instruments tested,
except between 35 C and 39 C. Even though the difference was not
significant, an increase of 35% and 38% was observed between 39 C
and 35 C for Reciproc Blue and Reciproc files, respectively. This

TABLE 2. Transformation Temperatures for Each of the 3 Samples of the 2 Nickel-titanium Instruments Tested
Sample Sample area Sample weight (mg) Start point ( C) As ( C) Af ( C) Peak ( C)
Reciproc 1 Apical 16.8 20 22.44 51.12 38.91
Reciproc 2 Apical 16.7 40 17.64 51.14 38.44
Reciproc 3 Apical 16.5 60 19.19 51.51 38.76
Average 19.75 51.25 38.70
Reciproc Blue 1 Apical 19.4 20 28.7 34.81 31.82
Reciproc Blue 2 Apical 15.5 40 27.29 32.43 30.04
Reciproc Blue 3 Apical 15.7 60 26.97 36.01 32.45
Average 27.65 34.42 31.44
Af, austenitic transformation finishing point; As, austenitic transformation starting point.

JOE — Volume -, Number -, - 2018 Cyclic Fatigue at Different Temperatures 3

Basic Research—Technology
finding shows a great sensibility of NiTi instruments to even minimal
changes of the environmental temperature at which the test is
conducted. A statistically significant higher life span was registered
for both instruments when tested at 20 C and 0 C, respectively, with
an increase of 180% and 286% for Reciproc Blue and 95% and
421% for Reciproc compared with 39 C. The increase of mechanical
properties from 39 C to 0 C was more linear for the instruments
subjected to the Blue treatment, whereas it was more evident at 0 C
for the M-Wire instruments. These results are in agreement with
those from a previous study in which the files that were less resistant
at room temperature showed a higher difference in the life span at
0 C (18). The authors have concluded that lower temperatures may
have less influence on instruments presenting higher flexibility at
room temperature because of the lower percentage of metal structure
that may pass from austenite to martensite (18).
In another recent study (16), the authors found that instruments
with a transformation temperature clearly above body temperature were
less affected by the increase of temperature during cyclic fatigue testing.
This would suggest that the results could be related to the thermome-
chanical history of the metal and may change depending on the transi-
tional temperature and the varying degrees of martensitic state of the
instruments at room temperature and at body temperature (8, 20,
21, 33).
A DSC test was used to correlate cyclic fatigue results of the present
study to phase transformation temperatures of the NiTi endodontic in-
struments tested. The results of this test confirm those of recently pub-
lished studies (21, 22) that suggested the average austenitic finish
temperature of instruments produced using Blue heat treatment just
below body temperature and those from Shen et al (8) reporting com-
parable results for instruments produced with M-Wire alloy.
Blue alloy significantly increases the cyclic fatigue resistance of Re-
ciproc files compared with M-Wire alloy. Temperature significantly af-
fects the fatigue life of NiTi files. When the ambient temperature
increases, the fatigue resistance of the files decreases. Further studies
should be designed to determine how it will be possible to clinically
apply these observations and to find a clinical strategy that may improve
the life span of endodontic instruments, such as warming them up or
cooling them down directly during clinical practice.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank VDW (Munich, Germany) for donating the
instruments used in this study.
The authors deny any conflicts of interest related to this study.
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