AN ELECTROCHEMICAL STUDY ON THE OXIDATION' AND REDUCTION OF DENTAL AMALGAM

치과용 아말감의 산화환원에 관한 전기화학적 연구

The purpose of this study was to observe corrosion characteristics of six dental amalgams and was to analyse corrosion products electrochemically. After each amalgam alloy and Hg was triturated as the direction of the manufacturer by using mechanical amalgamator, the triturated mass was inserted into the cylinderical metal mold ($12{\times}10mm$) and was condensed with 160kg/$cm^2$ by using the hydrolic press. The specimen was removed from the mold and was stored at room temperature for 1 week, and was polished with amalgam polishing kit. The anodic and cathodic polarization curve was obtained by using cyclic voltammetric method with 3-electrode potentiostat in saline for each amalgam and Ag, Sn, Cu plate specimen at $37{\pm}0.5^{\circ}C$. The potential sweep range was -1.7V~0. 4V(vs SCE) in working electrode and scan rate was 50mV/s and the exposed surface area of each specimen to the electrolytic solution was $0.79cm^2$. The results were as follows. 1. In anodic-cathodic polarization curve of amalgam specimens, two anodic current rising areas and two cathodic current peaks were obtained at the low Cu amalgam(CF, CS) specimen and three anodic current rising areas and three cathodic current peaks were obtained at the high Cu amalgam (TY, DS, HV) specimen. 2. As this compared with the anodic and cathodic current peak potentials of Sn, Cu and Ag specimen, the first cathodic current peak I c was caused by the reduction of divalent tin salt, second cathodic current peak IIIc results from the reduction of quadravalent tin salt, and third cathodic current peak me results from the reduction of copper salt. 3. As reverse potential sweeping was done repeatedly, anodic current was decreased slightly in all amalgam specimens.