An In Vitro Surface Characterization and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy Analysis to Examine the Impact of Y-TZP Ceramic Pretreatment with Hot H2SO4, Nd: YAP Laser, and Al2O3 on Both Surface Texture and Bond Integrity

Abstract

Aim: Pretreatment techniques i.e., Hydrofluoric acid (HF) acid, hot Sulfuric acid (H2SO4), and Nd: YAP laser on the surface roughness (Ra) and shear bond strength (SBS) of Y-TZP ceramics. Materials and Methods: Eighty Y-TZP ceramic discs were allocated into four different groups based on the conditioning (n = 20) Group 1: SB, Group 2:40% HF acid, Group 3: Hot H2SO4 and Group 4: Nd: YAP laser. Forty discs (n = 10 each) were subjected to Ra measurements using a profilometer. The dual-cure resin cement was applied to forty conditioned zirconia discs (10 from each group) for SBS. SBS and failure mode were assessed utilizing a universal testing machine (UTM) and stereomicroscope. To analyze the average values of Ra and SBS among the different groups, one-way ANOVA and post hoc Tukey test were used. Results: The maximum Ra scores and SBS were displayed by Group 3 samples. Group 2 specimens in which HF acid was used as a Y-TZP ceramics conditioner displayed minimum Ra and bond integrity. Comparison among different tested groups exhibited that Group 1, Group 4, and Group 3 displayed comparable outcomes of Ra and bond strength. Conclusions: Hot H2SO4 and Nd: YAP laser can be used as a suitable alternative to sandblasting as a surface pretreatment regime for Y-TZP ceramics.