The effect of adding graphene oxide nanoplatelets to Portland cement: Potential for dental applications

The potential of graphene-based materials to improve the physiomechanical properties of Portland cement-based materials without compromising biocompatibility is of interest to dental researchers and remains to be discovered.

This study investigated the effects of adding graphene oxide nanoplatelets (GONPs) on the surface microhardness and biocompatibility of Portland cement.

Three prototype Portland cement powder formulations were prepared by adding 0, 1, and 3 wt % GONPs in powder form to Portland cement. Prototype cement specimens were in the form of disks, with a diameter of 10 mm and a thickness of 2 mm. In experiment 1, surface microhardness was measured using the through indenter viewing hardness tester, 20 surface hardness values were obtained from all specimens. In experiment 2, Balb/C 3T3 fibroblasts were cultured with the material disks and the viability of cells was evaluated using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay.

The data were analyzed using the analysis of variance followed by Dunnett test (α = 0.05) or Tukey test (α = 0.05).

In response to material disks, the addition of 1 wt % GONPs had a proliferative effect on cells at day 3 and day 7 with a significant difference from the control. The addition of 3 wt % GONPs showed a remarkable increase in surface microhardness; however, it exhibited initial cytotoxicity.

The addition of 1 wt % GONPs to Portland cement improved surface microhardness without compromising biocompatibility; therefore, it has a greater potential for dental applications. The results of this work give other researchers leads in future assessments of this prototype material.