Mechanical Properties Enhancement of Conventional Glass Ionomer Cement by Adding Zirconium Oxide Micro and Nanoparticles

The aim of this work is to enhance the mechanical properties of the glass ionomer cement GIC (dental materials) by adding Zirconium Oxide ZrO2 in both micro and nano particles. GIC were mixed with (3, 5 and 7) wt% of both ZrO2 micro and nanoparticles separately. Compressive strength (CS), biaxial flexural strength (BFS), Vickers Microhardness (VH) and wear rate losses (WR) were investigated. The maximum compression strength was 122.31 MPa with 5 wt. % ZrO2 micro particle, while 3wt% nanoparticles give highest Microhardness and biaxial flexural strength of 88.8 VHN and 35.79 MPa respectively. The minimum wear rate losses were 3.776μg/m with 7 wt. % ZrO2 nanoparticle. GIC-containing ZrO2 micro and nanoparticles is a promising restorative material with improved mechanical properties expect wear rate losses.