Influence of zirconia surface treatments on resin cement bonding and phase transformation

It evaluated the effects of different zirconia surface treatments on the bond strength of a resin cement to Y-TZP (yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia) ceramics, as well as their phase-transformations. 75 blocks (5 mm × 5 mm × 4 mm) of Y-TZP were assigned into five groups (n = 15): (tribochemical silica coating - TBS) zirconia surface was abraded by silica coated alumina particles followed by silanization; (GLZ1) zirconia surface received the application of a thin layer of low-fusing porcelain glaze, followed by hydrofluoric acid (HF) etching for 1 min; (GLZ5) glaze application + HF etching by 5 min; (GLZ10) glaze application + HF etching by 10 min; (GLZ15) glaze application + HF etching by 15 min. After etching, all the specimens were washed, dried and silanized. Cylinders of composites (diameter: 3.25 mm; height: 3 mm) were cemented to the Y-TZP blocks using a resin cement. All the specimens were subjected to aging (10,000 thermal cycles and 90 days storage), tested under shear conditions, and finally analyzed by a stereomicroscope (failure analysis). In addition, we also performed topographical and phase transformation analyses of the treated zirconia surfaces. The TBS group presented the highest bond strength value (23.34 MPa). The glazed groups presented low bond values and high prevalences of pretest failures. X-ray diffraction analysis showed a phase transformation for the TBS group (13.14%); however, there was no clear phase change observed for the GLZ groups. From our results, we concluded that tribochemical silica coating is the main Y-TZP surface conditioning for resin bond improvements.