Dental alloy

(aka. Gamma phase Ag3Sn)

- Alloy being a combination of 2 metals
o Metals are in its solid rather than ionic form
o 65% Ag; 35% Sn
- Not pliable (means easily bent/flexible)
- Needs Hg to help pack it into the tooth
o Hg converts y to y1 and y2 which increases the pliability of amalgam
o y it self is too porous/ brittle
- Not perfectly soluble
- Not homogenous (sections of just Ag and sections of just Sn within Ag3Sn)
o If an oxide layer on the surface of Ag3Sn becomes too thick prevents binding of
Hg (passivated layer)
Passivated layer: Prevents the metal to corrode any further

2 types of cut of Ag3Sn:

- Lathe cut properties are varied, not as effective for amalgamation
o Shuave Spirals that are produced by putting Ag3Sn on a lathe machine These
spirals are later crunched up to smaller pieces
- Spherical cut particles are regular spherically sized so reaction with Hg is more reliable
and it is more readily condensed into a cavity

Amalgam Steps
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Trituration (mixing)
Condensation (packing)
Carving
Burnishing
Polishing

Trituration
Overall Reaction:

*y1 and y2 are inferior in strength, corrosion resistance and creep to y phase limit y1 an y2 by
limiting the amount of Hg
Trituration Process:
- Add Hg to gamma phase
o Initial contraction occurs (volume of Hg and gamma mixture is less than the total of
the initial volumes of the two mixtures)
o This is as y acts as a sponge absorbing the Hg
- Shake mixture to break up the alloy removes oxide layer and increases surface area for
Hg to react with gamma
o Increase SA as you break up the alloy Break off gamma particles off the big
unreacted gamma particle (breaking off anita)
o Hg reacts with Ag rich area to form gamma 1
o Hg reacts with Sn rich area to form gamma 2
o Continued shaking ensures that you remove the newly form y1 and y2 particles
Short Trituration Time: Stop shaking after a short period of time
- y1 and y2 dont fall off the y particle (no new surface area at y for Hg to react diffusion of
Hg into y particles are suppressed)
- Gamma 1 and 2 crystallise upon formation (nucleation) and results in expansion
o Nucleation = Forming the new phase of y1 and y2 from y results in expansion

*Crystallisation: Forming solid crystals y1 and y2 gets BIGGER

*Too much expansion = Bad = Cracking of tooth
*Also not enough y1 and y2 forms Amalgam not very packable as y itself is brittle/hard/not pliable
Long Trituration Time: Stop shaking only after a long time
- For a long time; gamma 1 and 2 are continually removed from the surface of gamma and a
new surface is available for reaction with Hg
o More gamma 1 and 2 are formed resulting in a smaller gamma core
o This results in a greater contraction
*Too much contraction = Bad = Leakage around margins of tooth and restoration
*Too much y1 and y2 = Inferior to y
AIM of trituration
- Need to achieve a balance between the contraction and expansion:
o Dont want : Formation of gamma 1 and 2 with no gamma remaining (completed
reaction)
o We want:
Some gamma 1 and 2 formation to keep the superior properties of gamma
in the product
Limit formation of gamma 2 (mainly) as gamma 2 has weaker properties
Easy to handle in oral cavity
Cannot become too porous (dont want too much product) so that it
withstands forces

But it needs to still be pliable enough to allow packing into oral

cavity
Must be able to set in a wet environment (within saliva)
*Time of trituration hence is the most important factor

Limiting the formation of gamma 2

-

Reduce trituration time and increase condensation force

o Reduce trituration less surface area available (and less contact time) for Hg to
react with gamma can only be reduced to a certain extent as amalgamation
MUST occur
o Increase condensation pushes excess Hg to the surface and removes it less Hg
is present to react with gamma to form gamma 2 after amalgam is set in mouth
(reduces post-setting expansion)
- Add a dispersed alloy (gamma alloy also containing other metals eg. Ag and Cu)
o Ag reacts with Hg to form more gamma 1
o Cu competes with Hg in gamma 2 to form a beta phase (Cu and Sn)
- Mechanical properties are improved BUT more galvanic corrosion occurs as more metals are
present need a balance between the two
*Y2 properties are inferior to gamma and gamma 1
*rate of formation is directly dependent on the amount of Hg present

Condensation
-

Condensation: Pressure applied with a packing instrument when placing the amalgam into a
cavity
Increase condensation pressure will
o Counteracts setting expansion
This is as the initial diffusion layer of Hg is disrupted and more Hg diffusion
takes place
o Also packs the amalgam alloy particles closer together leaving less room for Hg
Inhibits contraction from initial reaction? Sponge absorbing Hg
Excess Hg moves to the surface and is removed (less likely to react after it
sets) Prevent further formation of y1 and y2 (which tends to counteract
expansion)
Good condensation will remove as much of the mercury rich y1 and y2 phases
Inefficient condensation:
o Dont pack amalgam strong enough increased porosity which
can lead to 30% increase in creep

Restoration failure
Consequences of Creep
- Creep: Is the flow of set amalgam which causes
o Flattening of contact points between the amalgam restoration and neighbouring
tooth
o Overhang Margins
o Biting on amalgam can cause amalgam to flow up/over to the margins and can chip
off and cause leakage
o Amalgam can protrude into tooth margins which leads to marginal breakdown

*Overhang Margins: An excess of dental filling material beyond the cavity margin
Consequences of Corrosion?
- Corrosion: Amalgam undergoes chemical reaction with its environment forming breakdown
products
- Corrosion reaction: y2 + O2 Tin Salts and free Hg
o From this reaction; a passivating film of oxides is formed Insulate amalgam from
further reaction/corrosion?
o However, biting in amalgam removes the oxide layer and exposes amalgam Draw
picture
Gamma 2 is most reactive and a small electrolytic cell is created (galvanic
corrosion)
Gamma 2 is lost into the saliva as it corrodes (higher reduction potential
gain electrons and will be released as tin salts and free Hg)
o Zinc can be added to react with O2 preferentially to reduce corrosion (prevents
corrosion/oxidation of y2)
If it is contaminated it results in expansion
*Continued corrosion causes staining of dentine and stains amalgam as a dark grey/black
Tooth fracture
- Cavity preparations with sharp internal line angles are usually needed to increase
mechanical retention for amalgam
o There is very little bonding strength between amalgam and the tooth
o However sharp line angles = act as stress raises are contribute to tooth fracture
o COMPROMISE: use a slightly rounded cavity that also provides sufficient mechanical
retention
- Round off the acute cavosurface angles (unsupported enamel rods) to decrease risk of
chipping/marginal breakdowns Cavosurface angles should be 90o
- Amalgam does not reinforce remaining cusps on teeth
o Cusps are more likely to fracture/chip off
Coefficient of thermal expansion/contraction
- Large discrepancy between tooth (11.4) and amalgam (28)
o Expands and contracts very differently to tooth upon exposure to heat
o Contraction = leakage
o Expansion = cracking of tooth
- Amalgam also has a high coefficient of thermal conductivity
o Composite has similar thermal expansion/contraction as amalgam but much lower
thermal conductivity heat transfer rate is low; expands/contracts slower
- Opening the interface between tooth and restoration Allows bacterial ingress and
recurrent caries
Contamination of cavity
- Need to work in a dry environment Want amalgam to bond directly to the tooth (nothing
between tooth and amalgam which can cause failure at margins of restoration)
- Contamination with moisture (saliva) during packing can cause expansion (along with short
trituration and poor condensation)
o This can cause cracking of mesial/distal margins of teeth with Class 1 restorations
Amalgam failure
o Restoration is too thin relative to the surface
Cracks easily when biting on it
o Line angles in the cavity are too sharp
o Cavity preparation has poor mechanical retention
Amalgam restoration can fall out of cavity

Gross Amalgam Fracture

- Caused by shallow preparations (shallow = not enough strength), non-retentive cavity preps
or sharp line angles
Extra Points
*Can control size of Ag3Sn to minimize the amount of Hg required e.g. smaller y particles will have a
larger SA for reaction with Hg (so can decrease amount of Hg required)
*Less seconday caries occur in amalgam compared to composite
*Last 20-30 years; Composite a few years