ZrPro® Ceram Support

Our British-made ceramic systems have been created to replicate nature, layer-by-layer and blend in with dentition by selecting natural, high-quality ingredients and processing them together to form a unique blend with mechanical and life-like optical properties. Elegant Dent’s porcelains are not only user-friendly but price-friendly too.

The coping of the restoration should be designed in a manner to allow the application of an even thickness layer of porcelain. The moisture content of the ceramic-liquid mixture must be kept as constant as possible during the whole layering process. Gentle tapping can remove liquid binder if the ceramic is often condensated.

ZrPro® Ceram does not require the use of a Liner material. Instead we recommend to apply a thin layer of Dentine on the coping surface before heat treatment, which acts as the bonding layer.

In cases where the zirconia requires sandblasting, we recommend using a pressure that is as low as possible to avoid damaging the sintered surfaces of the zirconium oxide.

It is recommended to use ceramic pins in order to avoid possible contamination through metal or metal oxides.

Refer to our recommended firing parameters for ZrPro® Ceram as an approximation for all furnaces. Firstly, it must be checked that the furnace corresponds to factory calibration settings. We recommend preparing and firing samples according to our parameters, then adjusting as necessary. Position the sample on the firing tray at the same height and distance from edges of the tray as usually done with a ceramic crown.

If the edges of the sample are rounded, then it means the firing temperature was too high. If the surface is dull and has a milky-like core, the firing temperature is too low. When the firing temperature is suitable, the fired ceramic has a homogeneous surface with a natural glaze effect, and with edges that have sharp contours.

Avoid contamination of the coping. Chips in the ceramic may occur when there is no bonding layer. Ensure the framework is designed appropriately and provides support for the ceramic. Ensure to apply a thin layer of dentine as a bonding agent as ZrPro® Ceram does not require the use of a Liner layer. The CTE of the framework should be within the indicated range.

The firing parameters must be adhered to including drying temperature, drying time, heating time, heating rate, firing temperature, holding time, cooling time, cooling temperature, vacuum start temperature and vacuum end temperature. Ceramic cracks can occur when the drying time is shortened, or a fast-heating rate is used and therefore must be avoided. The furnace must be void from contaminants and cleaned well before application.

Incisal cracks may occur when a thick dentine layer is applied and/or when the cooling time is too short and/or a coping design that is insufficient and too small. This can be avoided by applying an appropriate dentine layer, extending cooling times and designing an appropriate coping.

Elegant Dent ceramics contain leucite and most of the time ceramic cracks during this process occur because a conventional leucite-free ceramic which are available on the market was used.

Thanks to the inclusion of leucite crystals this will be avoided in Elegant Dent if firing parameters are adhered to and complete crystal formation occurs, cracks will be avoided. However, using an uncalibrated furnace may lead to insufficient or over sintering which can lead to a more glassy phase and can be susceptible to cracks when contouring.

Please refer to suggested firing parameters and use a calibrated furnace.

One of the benefits of using ZrPro® Ceram is having reliable shade reproduction with a 99.5% shade accuracy!

To achieve proper colour, you must ensure to prevent the furnace being contaminated by volatile materials. To clear a furnace of any volatile materials, raise the furnace temperature from 650°C to 960°C and hold for 10 minutes under vacuum conditions.

Make sure that the Dentine and Transpa layers are sufficiently applied.

Lack of a gloss effect can be caused by having too low of a firing temperature, a contaminated and unclear surface after carving & contouring, or a condensed glaze layer. Avoid this by firing at a suitable temperature, cleaning the ceramic surface before glaze application and firing, apply an appropriate layer of glaze.

Contrary, too much of a gloss effect can be caused by very high firing temperatures. This can be avoided by lowering the firing temperature.

Please refer to suggested firing parameters and use a calibrated furnace.

The glaze firing can be performed without the use of Glaze materials. Although, the advantage of using Glaze materials is that the technician can control the desired level of glaze in a restoration and can be achieved more efficiently.

The difference in the final look that a natural glaze of the fired ceramic has, is a more satiny gloss, whereas the use of glaze materials can result in higher gloss effects.

You cannot use ZrPro® Ceram Stains & Glaze on metal restorations as the CTE has been designed perfectly for PFZ cases. This specificity ensures that there is no separation of ceramic and stain layers, and a perfect bond is ensured.