Adhesion strategies

DENT 2113
April 28th, 2023
Dr. Locke Davenport Huyer
l.davenporthuyer@dal.ca

1
 Learning Objectives
• Understand the role of surface energy in adhesion to
dental surface
• Appreciate the differences between adherent
surfaces, and implications for material selection
• Describe the importance of different adhesion steps
and how they correlate to adhesion theory

Recommended Reading: Zhao et. Al. Adhesion of teeth, Front.

Mater., 2021 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmats.2020.615225

2
Adhesives in dentistry

3
Adhesion on a molecular level
• Adhesion is bonding of dissimilar surfaces
• Cohesion is the internal strength that holds one
material together
Adhesion necessitates a balance between effective
adhesion and cohesion

https://pocketdentistry.com/4-adhesion-and-cohesion/ 4
Adhesives rely on a liquid resin and a
curing agent
• Primary components can include:
• acrylic resin monomers
• organic solvents
• Initiators and inhibitors
• filler particles

Zhao et. al. Adhesion of teeth, Front. Mater., 2021

5
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmats.2020.615225
Bond strength depends on molecular
interaction of adhesive and surfaces
• Adhesive strength is the load bearing capacity of an
adhesive (i.e. what it can withstand), achieved by
multiple theories:
• Mechanical interlocking
• Chemical bonding
• Molecular inter-diffusion
• Electrostatic
• Diffusion (physical)

Zhao et. al. Adhesion of teeth, Front. Mater., 2021

6
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmats.2020.615225
 Diffusion (physical)

Electrostatic

http://www.specialchem4adhesives.com/resources/adhesionguid
7
e/index.aspx?id=theory4
 Surface energy defines boundary
• Surface energy:
Defines the energetics
of a material surface,
giving context to the
relative attraction to
liquid adhesive

• High surface energy =

lots of interaction
• Low surface energy =
poor adhesive
spreading
Zhao et. al. Adhesion of teeth, Front. Mater., 2021
8
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmats.2020.615225
Contact angle defines surface energy
• Hydrophobic surface = dislikes water
• Hydrophilic surface = likes water

If there is a high surface energy the fluid can spread out

on the surface à a low contact angle

Zhao et. al. Adhesion of teeth, Front. Mater., 2021

9
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmats.2020.615225
Wetting
• To achieve effective adhesion requires the spread of
liquid over the adherent surface, known as wetting
• Complete wetting allows maximized surface area of
adhesion

0° = complete wetting; > 90°= poor wetting

https://www.ossila.com/en-ca/pages/a-guide-to-surface-energy 10
Pairing the properties of the resin and
the surface define adhesive wetting
• Conventional resin materials tend to be relatively
hydrophobic
• Other molecules are needed to interact with teeth
(enamel and dentin)
• A coupling (bonding) agent acts as bridge between
the tooth and the resin

Van Landuyt et al. Biomaterials. 2007. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2007.04.044.

11
https://pocketdentistry.com/33-bonding-to-dentin/
Multifunctional monomers provide the
bridge between resin and surface
• Di-acrylates crosslink the resin material
• Mono-acyrlates provide additional functionality for
binding to tooth surface

4-META

https://pocketdentistry.com/33-bonding-to-dentin/ 12
Enamel vs dentin: two different
adhesive challenges

Different surfaces require unique adhesive design

and/or application
https://pocketdentistry.com/4-fundamental-concepts-of-enamel-
13
and-dentin-adhesion/
Enamel as a binding site?

14
 Etching prepares the surface for
adhesion
• Usually achieved with acid treatment, etching
generates microstructures on the tooth surface and
increases surface energy
• Increase in surface area can be up to 2000 times!
• Generates reactive polar sites that can engage with monomer
(coupling agent)
Capillary forces fill microtopography
prior to resin curing!

15
 Resin curing relies on radical
polymerization

Initiator depends on resin type and application

Van Landuyt et al. Biomaterials. 2007. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2007.04.044. 16

Dentin provides a more challenging
adhesive surface

• Hydrophilic and oxygen

saturated
• Higher percent organic phase
• Variable structure – tubule
depth differs depending on
distance from dental surface
• Smear layer (dentin mud) –
organic layer remains after
treatment (milling)

17
Dentin smear layer and etching

https://pocketdentistry.com/4-fundamental-concepts-of-enamel-
and-dentin-adhesion/ 18
 Adhesion to Dentin
1. Conditioner: acid etching
2. Primer: hydrophilic
monomers that opens the
inter-fibular space and bind
to collagen
3. Adhesive resin and
subsequent curing

19
https://pocketdentistry.com/33-bonding-to-dentin/
 Material and preparation properties
that impact adhesion
• Conditioning (etching) – Acid type, concentration,
application time
• Primer selection – what surface properties allow for
adequate binding?
• Resin properties – appropriate balance between
cohesive and adhesive strength, reactivity with other
monomers (i.e. primers)
• Initiator – rate of binding, on demand curing?
• Fluid properties – liquid vs gel provide wetting
differences?

20
Implant materials require unique
adhesive design considerations
• Similar to enamel and dentin, each implant material
requires different strategies to ensure effective
adhesion
• For example, metal implants undergo treatment such
as acid etching, surface functionalization (silica
deposition) to improve surface energy, and the use of
different primers

In the clinic, it is important to consider the

differences between adherent surfaces, and select
materials accordingly

21
Adhesion failures

Materials are optimized for cohesive strength, as well as adhesive efficacy

J. Anthony von Fraunhofer, International Journal of Dentistry,
22
2012, https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/951324
Adhesion efficacy can be impacted by
changes in surface properties
• Disruption in surface energy greatly impacts how an
adhesive interacts with a surface.
• Common mechanisms to reduced efficacy are:
• Moisture/oil contamination àblood, saliva, oil from
equipment
• Inherent surface roughness
• Residual temporary materials (e.g. cements)
• Staining, plaque, calcification

Surface cleanliness prior to adhesion is important!

23
Biocompatibility
• Biological response can change adhesion
behaviour, and stability of adhesive bond. This
includes:
• Impact on wetting
• Stability to hydrolysis
• Swelling/shrinkage

Each of these properties needs to be assessed, along

with classical toxicity measurement, to ensure
appropriateness of an adhesive for an application

24
Different adhesives maintain the same
components

Van Landuyt et al. Biomaterials. 2007. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2007.04.044.

25
Summary
• Adhesion relies on surface energy of adherent
surfaces, and effective wetting by an adhesive
material
• Adhesion to different surfaces requires unique
material design – not all surfaces are the
same.
• Utilization of multi-step adhesion process
allows for binding of surfaces of diverse
properties!

26