Interactive effect of stress and temperature on creep of PFM alloys.

The creep rates of six alloys for porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM) restorations were determined as a function of flexural stress and temperature. Although two Pd-Cu alloys demonstrated excellent resistance to creep at low-stress, high-temperature conditions, they were especially susceptible to deformation at high stresses and temperatures near the glass transition temperature of dental porcelains. In comparison, a Ni-Cr alloy and a Pd-Co alloy demonstrated superior creep resistance at high-stress, low-temperature conditions. This indicates a relatively low potential for deformation due to stresses which may result from a thermal contraction differential between these two alloys and incompatible dental porcelains.