The purpose of this study was to determine if adhesion between various resin composites can occur by a chelation reaction of elemental ions. The surface composition of four commercially available resin composites (Beautifil II, Clearfil AP-X, Estelite Σ Quick and Solare) were measured by X-ray fluorescence analysis. Composite-to-composite adhesion with conventional silane coupling treatment was compared to self-etching primer treatment and evaluated by conventional shear bond strength testing. Our results detected Strontium and Barium (alkaline metallic earth ions) on the surface of Beautifil II and Clearfil AP-X resins. The shear bond strength values of self-etching primer treatments of Beautifil II and Clearfil AP-X was significantly higher than Estelite Σ Quick and Solare. Our data suggest that self-etching primer treatment is effective for adhesion of resin composites, depending on their filler composition, due to the chelation adhesion reaction between the acidic monomer and incorporated alkaline metal ions.