Effect of ceramic thicknesses and opacities on water sorption and solubility of a light-curing resin cement by different units

Aim: This study evaluated the water sorption and solubility of a light-cured resin cement, under four thicknesses and four opacities of a lithium disilicate ceramic, also considering three light-emitting diode (LED) units. Methods: A total of 288 specimens of a resin cement (AllCem Veneer Trans – FGM) were prepared, 96 samples were light-cured by each of the three light curing units (Valo – Ultradent / Radii-Cal – SDI / Bluephase II – Ivoclar Vivadent), divided into 16 experimental conditions, according to the opacities of the ceramic: High Opacity (HO), Medium Opacity (MO), Low Translucency (LT), High Translucency (HT), and thicknesses (0.3, 0.8, 1.5, and 2.0 mm) (n = 6). The specimens were weighed at three different times: Mass M1 (after making the specimens), M2 (after 7 days of storage in water), and M3 (after dissection cycle), for calculating water sorption and solubility. Results: The higher thickness of the ceramic (2.0 mm) significantly increased the values of water sorption (44.0± 4.0) and solubility (7.8±0.6), compared to lower thicknesses. Also, the ceramic of higher opacity (HO) generated the highest values of sorption and solubility when compared to the other opacities, regardless of the thickness tested (ANOVA-3 factors / Tukey’s test, α = 0.05). There was no influence of light curing units. Conclusion: Higher thicknesses and opacities of the ceramic increased the water sorption and solubility of the tested light-cured resin cement.