Bonding polycarbonate brackets to ceramic: effects of substrate treatment on bond strength.

This study evaluated the effects of 5 different surface conditioning methods on the bond strength of polycarbonate brackets bonded to ceramic surfaces with resin based cement. Six disc-shaped ceramic specimens (feldspathic porcelain) with glazed surfaces were used for each group. The specimens were randomly assigned to 1 of the following treatment conditions of the ceramic surface: (1) orthophosphoric acid + primer + bonding agent, (2) hydrofluoric acid gel + primer + bonding agent, (3) tribochemical silica coating (silicon dioxide, 30microm) + silane, (4) airborne particle abrasion (aluminum trioxide, 30microm) + silane, and (5) airborne particle abrasion (aluminum trioxide, 30microm) + silane + bonding agent. Brackets were bonded to the conditioned ceramic specimens with a light-polymerized resin composite. All specimens were stored in water for 1 week at 37 degrees C and then thermocycled (1000 cycles, 5 degrees C to 55 degrees C, 30 seconds). The shear bond strength values were measured on a universal testing machine at a crosshead speed of 1 mm/min. Brackets treated with silica coating with silanization had significantly greater bond strength values (13.6 MPa, P =.01) than brackets treated with orthophosphoric acid (8.5 MPa). There was no significant difference (P =.97) between the bond strengths obtained after airborne abrasion with aluminium trioxide particles followed by silanization (12 MPa) and hydrofluoric acid application (11.2 MPa) (ANOVA and Tukey test). Although brackets conditioned with orthophosphoric acid exhibited only adhesive failures of the luting cement from the ceramic surface, other conditioning methods showed mixed types of failures. Airborne particle abrasion with aluminium trioxide or silica coating followed by silanization gave the most favorable bond strengths. The types of failures observed after debonding indicated that the critical parameter was the strength of the adhesive joint of the luting cement to both the bracket and the ceramic.