The effect of nano-structured alumina coating on the bond strength of resin-modified glass ionomer cements to zirconia ceramics

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Y-TZP ceramic surface functionalization with a nano-structured alumina coating on bond strength of the resin modified glass ionomer dental cement. A total of 160 disc-shaped specimens were produced and randomly divided into two groups of 80. Half of the discs in each group received an alumina coating which was fabricated by exploiting the hydrolysis of aluminum nitride (AlN) powder. The shear bond strengths of the resin-modified glass ionomer cement FUJI+ (GC Japan) and the composite resin luting agent RelyX Unicem (3M ESPE, USA) were then studied for the coated and uncoated surfaces The SEM analyses revealed that the application of an alumina coating to the Y-TZP ceramics created a highly retentive surface for bonding. The bond strengths for the coated groups in both cements were significantly higher than the uncoated groups.