ABSTRACT
Plasma treatment is an alternative way in improving bonding properties of fiber-reinforced post. However, technical parameters of this treatment need to be clarified, especially treatment time. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of plasma treatment time on adhesion between fiber-reinforced post and a flowable composite core. Two types of post, methacrylate-based matrix (FRC Postec) and epoxy resin-based matrix (DT Light post) were treated with the mixture of Helium and Nitrogen (He+N2) plasma using a radiofrequency generator with various times before bonding to flowable methacrylate-based composite. Pull-out tests were performed using a universal testing machine. One-way ANOVA revealed that the best plasma treatment time for FRC Postec and DT Post was 10 and 15 minutes respectively. The adhesive properties of both posts tend to degrade with longer plasma treatment time. Water advancing contact angles on methacrylate-based polymer and epoxy resin-base polymer were decreased as the plasma treatment time was increased.Keywords: Fiber-reinforce composite post, tensile-shear bond strength, plasma treatment, contact angle