Objective: To research the influence of different surface pretreatment and thermocycling on shear bond strength (SBS) between veneering resins and a modified polyetheretherketone (PEEK) material.
Materials and Methods: (PEEK) specimens were machined and allocated into Four pretreatment groups, Group A; no treatment, Group B; etching with 98% sulfuric acid for
1 min, Group C; air abrasion with 50 µm Al2O3, and Group D; air abrasion with 110 µmAl2O3. Surface roughness (Ra) was determined by a profilometer. Surface morphology of specimens was scanned by a Scanning Electron Microscope. Specimens were treated with Visio.link bond, divided into two subgroups; one veneered with SR Nexco and the other with Crea.lign composites. SBS was tested immediately and after thermocycling. Data were statistically analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey HSD, α = 0.05.
Results: Air abrasion with 110 µm alumina significantly increased the surface roughness (P<0.001). The highest shear bond strength values were observed for sulfuric acid etched group. Specimens veneered with CreaLign showed non-significant higher SBS values than those veneered with SR Nexco (P>0.05). After thermocycling, all tested groups revealed significant improvement in SBS (p<0.001).
Conclusions: A modified PEEK material strengthened with 20% submicron ceramic fillers, could be treated by etching with 98% sulfuric acid for 1 min, to enhance bond strength to veneering composites and was found to have significant improvement in bond strength after thermocycling.