The thermocycling test is one of the most important methods for evaluating adhesion durability of metal-bonded resin system. However, researchers have adopted various kinds of thermocyclings pecimens which greatly differ from one another in size, shape, restriction method for adhesive area, etc. These differences in specimens make the comparison of test results difficult and the uniformity of adhesion specimens is to be desired.
In this study, adhesion specimens applied the three metal bonding systems were constructed, and the influence of the difference in configuration and material of the specimens were studied based on the results of thermocycling test up to 50, 000 times.
The results were as follows:
1. The shear bond strength of 5-mm diameter specimens showed higher value than that of 3-mm diameter when the bonding area was restricted by the shape of the handle end.
2. The specimen with adhesive area restricted by masking tape showed higher bond strength compared with the specimen whose bonding area was restricted by the shape of the handle end.
3. The highest bond strength was obtained in the specimen with a handle made of the same material as the adhered disk.
4. Thermocycling stress influenced most severely the specimen with a brass ring handle.