Pretreatment of Hybrid Ceramics Using Alumina (Al₂O₃) Nanoparticles, Hydrofluoric Acid, and Holmium: YAG Laser for Optimizing Surface Roughness, Shear Bond Strength, and Topography

Abstract

Evaluation of different conditioning regimes i.e., hydrofluoric acid (HFA), sandblasting (SB), selfetching ceramic primer (SECP), and Holmium: YAG (Ho: YAG) laser on the surface roughness (Ra) and shear bond strength (SBS) of hybrid ceramics. One hundred and ten hybrid ceramic discs were fabricated using the CAD-CAM technique. The discs were randomly allocated into five groups. Group 1: No Conditioning (Control), Group 2: HFA etching, Group 3: SB, Group 4: SECP and Group 5: Ho: YAG laser. The quantitative measurement of the roughness (Ra) (n = 10) from each group was conducted using a profilometer. The dual cure resin cement was bonded on the remaining fifty samples. Shear bond strength (SBS) and failure analysis were performed using a universal testing machine (UTM) and stereomicroscope. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with post hoc Tukey tests was used to assess and compare the mean values of Ra and SBS among study groups. Specimens pretreated with SB displayed the maximum Ra value and bond scores. The control specimens exhibited minimum Ra and SBS. Intergroup comparison analysis indicated that HFA and Ho: YAG laser-treated groups displayed comparable outcomes of Ra and bond integrity. Sandblasting using alumina particles proved to be the most favorable pretreatment modality for hybrid ceramic surface pretreatment for attaining optimum surface roughness and shear bond strength.