Nanoparticles as void fillers in glass ionomer cement for enhanced physicomechanical properties

The study evaluated the addition of silver (Ag) and titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles to conventional glass ionomer cement (GIC), considering compressive strength (CS), diametral tensile strength (DTS), flexural strength (FS), and hardness. Ag and TiO₂ nanoparticles were blended into the powder of a commercially available GIC restorative material at 5% (w/w). Unblended powder was used as a control. One hundred twenty samples were prepared from two study groups and one control group (n = 10). CS, DTS, and FS were evaluated using a universal testing machine, while hardness was measured by Vickers microhardness testing. The data obtained were analyzed using One-way analysis of variance and the Tukey’s test (p < 0.05). GIC containing Ag and TiO₂ nanoparticles significantly improved the CS, DTS, and hardness compared to the control group (P <0.05). However, the FS was not much affected by the addition of either of the nanoparticles (P >0.05). TiO₂ blended GIC demonstrated significantly higher CS (154.20+2.38) and DTS (13.2±0.5 MPa) compared to control 117.2±1.2 MPa and 7.2 ±0.8 MPa, respectively. While Blend of GIC+Ag nanoparticles showed the highest FS (29.0±0.7 MPa). Additionally, the blend of GIC+TiO₂ exhibited the highest hardness (90.4±1.1 VHN). Ag and TiO₂ blended GICs might guarantee their use in occlusal or higher stress-bearing areas.