Polishability of dental amalgam as influenced by condensation pressure and primary mercury content

The polishability of some amalgam products was studied by determining the roughness (Rs) of metallographically polished specimens. The surface porosity of the specimens was also measured and was found to be closely correlated with the roughness. Two manipulative variables, condensation pressure and primary (precondensation) mercury content, were examined with respect to their effect on porosity and polishability. For the condensation pressures 14 and 20 MPa no differences could be observed in the effect on the surface properties studied. The primary mercury content was varied in three steps--the normal, recommended level and 5% more and less than this. For those products having a recommended precondensation mercury content of 50% or less, the 5% decrease in mercury resulted in a pronounced increase in porosity and Rs. The results indicate that polishability is for some products markedly improved by avoiding a dry mix.