Influence of Different Curing Modes on Polymerization Behavior and Mechanical Properties of Dual-Cured Provisional...

This study determined the influence of curing mode on polymerization behavior and mechanical properties of dual-cured provisional resins. Three dual-cured bisacryl-based provisional resins were used: Tempsmart (TS; GC Corp), Luxatemp Automix Solar (LX; DMG Chemisch Pharmazeutishe Fabrik GmbH), and Integrity Multi·Cure (IG; Dentsply Caulk). A self-cured bisacryl-based provisional resin, Protemp Plus (PP; 3M ESPE) and a conventional poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) provisional resin, Unifast III (UF; GC Corp) were used as controls. The inorganic filler content and coefficients of linear thermal expansion of the test materials were measured. Six specimens of each material were used to determine the flexural strength, elastic modulus, and resilience. The changes in ultrasound velocity during polymerization were measured. The average inorganic filler contents of the provisional resins, apart from UF, ranged from 24.4 to 39.3 wt%. The highest inorganic filler content was determined for LX, whereas TS showed the lowest value among the tested materials. The average coefficients of thermal expansion of the tested provisional resins ranged from 77.3 to 107.7 (×10^-6/°C). TS and IG showed significantly lower thermal expansions than the other tested provisional resins. The mean flexural strengths of the provisional resins ranged from 70.4 to 122.6 MPa, the mean elastic moduli ranged from 1.8 to 3.7 GPa, and the mean resilience of the provisional resins ranged from 1.1 to 2.3 MJ/mm³, respectively. Dual-cured provisional resins showed significantly higher flexural strengths than the PMMA resin. However, in all cases, the light-curing mode showed significantly higher flexural strengths than the self-curing mode. In the initial polymerization phase, dual-cured resins in the light-curing mode showed a rapid increase in the speed of sound (V) during light irradiation, followed by a slower increase. Conversely, the dual-cured resins in the self-curing mode showed a slower initial increase, followed by a rapid increase. Although no significant difference in V was observed between 10 and 15 minutes in the light-curing mode of all tested dual-cured resins, a significantly higher V value was obtained at 15 minutes than at 10 minutes in the self-curing modes for LX and IG. Regardless of the curing mode, tested dual-cured provisional resins showed superior mechanical properties than the conventional PMMA provisional resin. However, dual-cured provisional resin flexural properties and polymerization behavior were affected by the curing mode. This study indicated that the light-curing mode might be recommended for all dual-cured provisional resins because of the enhancement of their mechanical properties and reduction of chair time.