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Updated: Aug 11, 2026

Expression of Cementitious Pore Solution and the Analysis of Its Chemical Composition and Resistivity Using X-ray Fluorescence
Published on: September 23, 2018
A comparative study of selected properties of ProRoot mineral trioxide aggregate and two Portland cements
G Danesh1, T Dammaschke, H U V Gerth
1Department of Orthodontics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
Aim:
To compare solubility, microhardness and radiopacity of ProRoot mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) with two Portland cements (PC: CEM I and CEM II).
Methodology:
Solubility: for standardized samples (n = 12/group) ring moulds were filled with the cements. These samples were immersed in double-distilled water for 1 min, 10 min, 1 h, 24 h, 72 h, and 28 days. Mean loss of weight was determined. Microhardness: five samples of each cement were produced. All samples were loaded with a diamond indenter point with a weight of 100 g for 30 s. Radiopacity: five samples per cement were produced. These samples were tested according to the ISO standards to compare their radiodensity to that of an aluminium step wedge (1-9 mm). Differences between the three materials with respect to their solubility, microhardness and radiopacity were analysed using ANOVA and Student-Newman-Keuls.
Results:
After 28 days MTA was of low solubility (0.78%) compared with CEM I (31.38%) and CEM II (33.33%). At exposure times >1 min the two PCs were significantly more soluble than MTA (P < 0.05). The microhardness for MTA was significantly higher (39.99 HV; P < 0.001) compared with the two PC (CEM I: 16.32 HV; CEM II: 13.51 HV). MTA was significantly more radiopaque (5.34 mm Al) than CEM I (3.32 mm Al) and CEM II (2.52 mm Al) (P < 0.05), whereas CEM I was significantly more radiopaque than CEM II (P < 0.05).
Conclusions:
Mineral trioxide aggregate displayed superior material properties than both Portland cements.
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