Comparison of optical and crystal properties of three translucent yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystals with those of lithium disilicate glass-ceramic material.

Background/purpose: Among the ceramic materials used for all-ceramic crowns, zirconia has high biocompatibility and favorable mechanical properties, but its main drawbacks include low translucency and stress-induced phase transformation. To stabilize high-strength tetragonal zirconia polycrystal (TZP), 3-5 mol% yttria is usually added to prepare yttria-stabilized TZP (Y-TZP). In this study, the optical properties of three commercial Y-TZP ceramics were compared with those of the clinically available glass-ceramic material of lithium disilicate, and the relationship between translucency and crystal properties was analyzed in vitro.
Materials and Methods: Twelve 5-mm-thick standardized disks were prepared from three Y-TZP ceramics and one lithium disilicate block. Absolute translucency was measured using a spectrophotometer with an integrating sphere. X-ray diffraction was used to quantify the main structural parameters (i.e., preferred plane, quantitative phase, and grain size) of Y-TZP crystals.
Results: The product-dominated phase of Y-TZP exhibited a tetragonal lattice pattern, and the preferred planes had minor variations. The diffraction patterns of the three Y-TZP ceramics demonstrated minor effects on translucency, without significant differences ( p > 0.05). The grain size of 54-70 nm was negatively related to translucency in Y-TZP. Lithium disilicate specimens had significantly higher translucency than the three Y-TZP specimens ( p < 0.001).
Conclusion: Grain size reduction played an essential role in developing highly translucent Y-TZP ceramics. The three Y-TZP ceramics were essentially opaque but exhibited poorer translucency than lithium disilicate in terms of esthetics.
Competing Interests: All authors declare no conflicts of interest.
(© 2021 Association for Dental Sciences of the Republic of China. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V.)