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Asian Pac J Dent 2019; 19: 1-8

Effects of hydrophilic and hydrophobic surface modifications onpoly(methyl methacrylate) denture base resins
Shigeki Mitsuda, DDS (1), Satoshi Ino, DDS, PhD (1), Tomotaro Nihei, DDS, PhD (2),Yasushi Umeda, BE (3), Mitsuhiro Watanabe, PhD (3), Osamu Takai, PhD (3), andHideo Honma, PhD (3)(1) Division of Prosthodontics, Department of Highly Advanced Stomatology, Graduate School of
Dentistry, Kanagawa Dental University, (2) Division of Clinical Biomaterials, Department of Oral
Science, Graduate School of Dentistry, Kanagawa Dental University, Yokosuka, (3) Materials &Surface Engineering Research Institute, Kanto Gakuin University, Odawara, Japan
Purpose: Several hydrophilic and hydrophobic approaches have been developed to prevent food debris andplaque accumulation on the denture surface. In this study, we evaluated the possibility of developing ahigh-functioning self-cleaning denture.
Materials and Methods: Denture base resin specimens were divided into the following groups based on thetype of surface treatment: control (no treatment); hydrophilic (UV irradiation or tribochemical coating); andhydrophobic (plasma chemical vapor deposition, CVD). Surface analyses were conducted using X-ray
photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy. Physicalstrength was evaluated using the three point bending test. Data were analyzed using one-way analysis ofvariance followed by multiple comparisons.
Results: The self-cleaning effects of the hydrophilic treatments were unsatisfactory; alternatively, thehydrophobicity, mechanical properties, and self-cleansing ability of the CVD specimens were significantly high(p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Hydrophobic surface modifications effectively improved the water repelling properties of the resin
without compromising its mechanical properties.
(Asian Pac J Dent 2019; 19: 1-8.)
Key Words: chemical vapor deposition, denture base, self-cleaning, tribochemical coating, ultraviolet light

Introduction
Aspiration pneumonia is the leading cause of death in the elderly. It is mainly caused by infectious diseases via
oral indigenous bacteria as a result of poor oral hygine. It has been reported that approximately 16% of denture
wearers use appropriate methods to clean their dentures [1,2]. Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) resin iscommonly used as a denture base material; however, the water absorbing property of this resin encourages theadhesion of plaque along with food debris and salivary proteins on the surface of the denture. Denture cleaning
is rarely performed correctly even after providing detailed instructions to the denture wearers. This may be dueto the fact that older people with decreased vision and/or motor skills may find it difficult to clean small andcomplex shaped dentures using special cleaners and brushes after every meal. Thus, insufficient cleaning resultsin denture plaque accumulation on the surface of the dentures leading to the occurrence of denture stomatitis andaspiration pneumonia [3].
Sawada et al. [4] developed a self-cleaning denture by adding a photo catalyst material, fluorapatite-titania(Fap-TiO2) to the denture base acrylic resin and applying UV irradiation for 6 h per day. However, it isimportant to note that the mechanical strength of acrylic resin could be compromised due to the breakage ofbonds by radicals produced after UV irradiation or addition of TiO2, in addition to the promotion of cross-linking
reactions due to the formation of intermolecular bonds at the cutting site [5,6].
Several hydrophilic and hydrophobic approaches have been developed to prevent the adhesion of stains on
the surface of the denture. Chemical surface alteration by UV irradiation [7] and mechanical and structuralchanges using tribochemical methods have been used to improve the hydrophilic characteristics of the denture1

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surface. Tribochemistry is a biomimetic technology used for the prevention of staining in fractal structures withnumerous regular micro-asperities [8]. Because of the hydrophilicity of these structures, residual food debris,
plaque, and stains can be easily removed even with gentle water pressure. The plasma chemical vapor deposition(CVD) method was propsed to obtain anti-staining effects based on its hydrophobic characteristics [9,10]. Thismethod is thought to affect cell adhesion on the surface via prohibition of cell division and growth thereby
exhibiting superior biocompatibility [11].
In the present study, the possibility of developing a “high-functioning self-cleaning denture” was evaluatedunder the concept of prevention rather than removal of stains via surface modification (hydrophilic andhydrophobic) using high technologies on the denture surfaces.

Materials and Methods
Preparation of specimens
Cold-cure denture base resin (PMMA; Palapress Vario, Heraeus Kulzer, Germany) was prepared in accordancewith manufacturer’s instructions at a powder/liquid ratio of 7 g / 10 mL, placed in a silicon mold, andpolymerized in a pressure pot (Perma Pot UP-III; GC Corp., Tokyo, Japan) for 10 min. Subsequently, a total of
65 specimens were fabricated by sectioning the resins (Type A: diameter, 11.0 mm; thickness, 3 mm) with a low
speed precision cutting machine (Isomet, Buehler Ltd., Lake Bluff, IL, USA) (Fig. 1). And a total of 60
specimens were fabricated (Type B: width, 2.0 mm; thickness, 2.0 mm; and length, 25 mm) (Fig. 2). The
surfaces of the specimens were polished using a series of #600 to #1500 grit waterproof polishing paper (Sankyo
Rikagaku Co., Ltd., Okegawa, Japan). Next, the specimens underwent ultrasonic cleaning (four times) for 8 mineach followed by complete removal of the water using Kimwipes. The specimens were then divided into fourgroups based on the type of surface modification performed as follows: controls (no surface modification);hydrophilic treatment involving ultraviolet (UV) irradiation for 5 min (UV5) and tribochemical coating (TC);and hydrophobic treatment via chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

Fig. 1 Procedure of sample preparation (Type A)

Fig. 2 Procedure of sample preparation (Type B)

Surface modification (hydrophilic treatment)
UV light irradiation in air
The specimens were placed on a wrinkled aluminum foil. A compact UV surface treatment equipment(KOL1-300S, Koto Electric, Tokyo, Japan) was used to apply the UV irradiation (184.9 nm and 253.7 nm) for 5
min (UV5) and 10 min (UV10) each on both sides of the specimens. The distance between the UV lamp and thespecimen was 30 mm.

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Tribochemical coating (TC)
Rocatec processing (Rocatec, 3M ESPE, Seefeld, Germany) is an airborne particle abrader that injects silica(SiO2) directly on to the surface of the specimen, creating a silicate layer. This process is called friction-chemical
surface treatment (TC). In the present study, surface modification was conducted by injecting aluminum oxide
particles coated with silica (30 µm in diameter) using a pressure of 0.3 MPa for 15 s from distance of 10 mmfrom the specimen.
Surface modification (Hydrophobic treatment)
An organic thin film CVD device (UK-S20, N-factory, Nagoya, Japan) was used for this treatment (Fig. 3a). The
specimen was placed in a vacuum chamber and air was removed using a vacuum pump (5 Pa). Argon (Ar) gas(20-30 Pa) was injected at high frequency (13.56 MHz; 150-200 W; 1 min) and liquid of tetramethyl
orthosilicate (0.5 mL) was added little by little for 1 min (Fig. 3b). Finally, the injection of Ar gas was stopped
and the specimen was retrieved after releasing the vacuum.

Fig. 3 Process of hydrophobic treatment; (a) Picture showing the equipment used, (b) Internal structure

Surface analysis
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS; PHI5000 Versa ProbeII, Ulvac-PHI, Inc., Chigasaki, Japan), Fouriertransform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR; ATR PRO450-S, Jasco, Hachioji, Japan) and atomic force microscopy(AFM; SPM-9600, Shimadzu, Kyoto, Japan) were used for surface analysis after modification.
Measurement of surface free energy
Wetting was evaluated using the liquid droplet method with water and di-iodomethane by measuring the contact
angle of each treated surface after modification. The average value measured three times was used as arepresentative value of each specimen, and five specimens of each group were measured (n = 5). Eachmeasurement was conducted using an automatic and dynamic contact angle meter (DCA-VZ, Kyowa Interface
Science, Niiza, Japan). Surface free energy was calculated from the values using Owens-Wendt equation [12].
Coloring test
Susceptibility to staining from food was evaluated by mixing 8 g of curry powder (S&B Spicy Curry Powder,
S&B Foods Inc., Tokyo, Japan) in 700 mL of warm water (37˚C) and used as a staining solution. Only thebottom half of the specimen was immersed in the solution for 1 min and washed under running water for 10 s.
After complete removal of the water, the difference in color (ΔE*ab) between the control (no immersion in currypowder) and experimental groups was measured using a chroma meter (CR-241, Konica Minolta, Inc., Tokyo,
Japan). The area not immersed and the area immersed were measured three times each, and the difference3Mitsuda et al.

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between the average values was taken as the color difference representative value of the specimen, and fivespecimens of each group were measured (n = 5). The following formula was used to measure the color
difference based on the L*a*b* color system: ΔE*ab = (Δa2 + Δb2 + ΔL2)1/2.
Three point bending test
For the three point bending test, the resin specimens were was prepared as described earlier, except for a few
alterations. The PMMA resin specimens were prepared using the cold cure method according to manufacturer’s
instructions (Fig. 2). After four repeats of ultrasonic cleaning and drying, the specimens were divided into fourgroups as described earlier. The mechanical strength of each specimen was measured using a compact table-top
universal testing machine (EZ TEST EZ-S, Shimadzu) at an inter-fulcrum distance of 40 mm and a crosshead
speed of 1.0 mm/min. The measurements were performed at on days 28 (after storage in water at 37˚C).
Statistical analysis
One-way analysis of variance was conducted for the data obtained and multiple comparisons were performed
using Tukey-Kramer tests (p < 0.05).

Results
Figures 4 and 5 illustrate the results of the XPS survey spectrum in the control, UV5, and UV10 groups and the
TC and CVD groups, respectively. Increase in silica (Si) content was noted at the binding energy position as
indicated by an arrow.

Fig. 4 (left) Results of the XPS survey spectra in the untreated (control, red) and atmospheric ultraviolet (UV) irradiation treated(UV5, blue; UV10, green) groups. Arrows indicate areas of no reaction.
Fig. 5 (right) Results of XPS survey spectra in the tribochemical (TC, blue) and (CVD, red) groups. An increase in silica (Si)content was noted at the binding energy position (arrow).

Figure 6 shows the results of the O1s spectrum of the XPS. A decrease in the height of the peak in thehigh-energy region was observed in the UV5 and UV10 groups relative to the control group.
Figure 7 shows the results of the superposition of the control, UV5, and UV10 groups by FT-IR. In the UV5and UV10 groups, differences of about 3,400 cm-1 specific to the OH group in the infrared absorption spectrum
were noted relative to the control group.
The results of AFM are presented in Fig. 8. Regular micro-asperities (fractal structure) were seen on thesurface.
The hydrophilic treatment groups (UV5 and TC groups) showed higher values of surface energy whencompared with the control group (p < 0.05) (Table 1).
Color changes mean and SD in parentheses in the UV5 8.90 (1.18) and TC 5.06 (0.68) groups weresignificantly greater than that in the control group 2.96 (0.55) (p < 0.05). However, the CVD group 0.69 (0.95)

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demonstrated significantly lower changes in color when compared to the controls (p < 0.05) (Fig. 9).
The CVD group maintained significantly higher values of mechanical strength relative to the control group at
on days 28 after storage in water at 37˚C (p < 0.05) (Table 2).

Fig. 6 (left) Results of the O1s high-resolution spectra using XPS in the control (red) and atmospheric UV irradiated (UV5, blue;
UV10, green) groups. A decrease in binding energy peak in the high-energy region was noted in the UV irradiated group whencompared with the untreated group.
Fig. 7 (right) Results of superposition of the control (red) and atmospheric UV irradiated (UV5, green; UV10, blue) by FT-IR. A-1
difference in the infrared absorption spectra at around 3,400 cm (characteristic of the OH group) was noted in the UV irradiatedgroup when compared with the untreated group.

Fig. 8 (left) Results of atomic force microscopy (AFM). (a) Control. (b) TC. Formation of fine regular irregular structures (fractal
structures) on the surface
Fig. 9 (right) Result of average values of color change after surface modifications (n = 5, p < 0.05)

Table 1 Results of surface free energy measurement

Table 2 Results of three point bending test

Surface modifications Surface free energy (mN/m)
Surface modifications
Bending strength (MPa)	 Control
36.1 (3.8) b
Control
88.5 (9.3) b
	
 
c
UV5
62.6 (3.0)
UV5
69.6 (7.0) a	 cTC63.0 (4.3)
TC
88.7 (10.2) b
	
 
a
CVD
32.6 (6.1)
CVD
99.8 (11.9) c	 Means and (Standard deviations), Values having the same superscript are not statistically different (p > 0.05).

Discussion
Active oxygen species (AOS) generated by UV light irradiation in air was used as a hydrophilic surface
modification method in the present study. AOS is a collective term used for oxygen species that have highreactivity when compared with oxygen molecules in the ground state (3O2). The production of AOS is simple
and can be accomplished by simultaneously applying a specific wavelength of UV light to the ground state
oxygen molecules (3O2) or water (H2O). Irradiation of the surface with UV light (wavelength, 185 nm) in air
results in the production of ozone by the oxygen molecules. Absorption of wavelengths of 254 nm in the excitedstate results in the conversion of ozone into active oxygen [13]. The presence of active oxygen atoms on the5Mitsuda et al.

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surface of polymeric molecules due to the strong oxidation reactivity leads to the oxidizing of the surface
making it hydrophilic in nature.
XPS was used to evaluate the molecular state of the surface after modification. The binding energy of theelectrons and atomic nuclei before release was calculated by measuring the kinetic energy of the core electrons
released due to the external photoelectric effect of the X-ray irradiation. The binding energy indicates an element
specific value; therefore, XPS measurements can provide both qualitative and quantitative analyses of theseelements. Based on the findings of the O1s spectrum (Fig. 6) using XPS, a decrease in the peaks in high-energy
regions was observed in the UV irradiated groups when compared with the non-treatment control group.
Consequently, it is suggested that UV light irradiation decreased the C-O bonding at a binding energy ofapproximately 534 eV followed by the formation of a hydrophilic group such as -OH or -COOH [14,15]. In the
FT-IR analysis, a difference in the infrared absorption spectrum was noted between the non-treatment group andthe UV light irradiation group at around 3,400 cm-1, a spectrum specific to the OH group (Fig. 7). These results
indicate that hydrophilicity was achieved by UV light irradiation in air forming chains of OH groups at themolecular ends of the surface. On the other hand, cleavage of the molecular structure of the surface of thedenture base resin decreased the mechanical strength, although the effect was limited to the irradiated surface
only [16] (p < 0.05) (Table 2). TC is a surface treatment that results in the formation of a silicate layer that canbe silane-treated and may prove useful for adherends that cannot accept silane treatment via conventional
methods [17].
Rocatec Pre (particle size, 110 µm) and Rocatec Plus (particle size, 110 µm) have been used for the surface
treatments of zirconia and metal in a number of studies [18-22]. However, injection of these materials on to resin
surfaces using 0.3 MPa of compressed air may result in excessive roughness or surface damage due to thesoftness of resins when compared to zirconia or metal. Thus, Rocatec Soft (particle size, 30 µm) was used is thecurrent study [23]. TC forms high concentrations of silica due to the collision of silica particles with the denturebase resin and the characteristic regular micro-asperity (fractal structure) on the surface that absorbs water fromthe air, forming a thin film of water on the surface. This mechanism is considered to increase the hydrophilicityof the entire surface [17,24]. Similarly, hydrophilicity due to increase in free energy on the surface wasconfirmed without compromising the mechanical strength of the resin, in the present study.
Unlike the environment in the general industry, dentures can be exposed to oil from food in the oral cavity.
The self-cleaning effects of the hydrophilic treatments (UV light irradiation in air and TC) in the present study
were found to be unsatisfactory after immersion in curry powder.
In the CVD group (hydrophobic treatment), application of high frequency radiation excited and activated theatoms and molecules of gas resulting in the formation of a thin film [25,26]. This method can modify themolecular structure of the surface via a chemical reaction without changing the form of the surface, wherein Si
binds to the surface and provides an effective surface treatment [27]. On the other hand, in cases of physicalvapor deposition (PVD), which included sputter and vacuum deposition, surface modification is physicallyachieved by the deposition of particulate raw materials via sputtering or by thermal evaporation [28,29].
However, coverage of miniscule concavities and convexities is challenging; therefore, it is beneficial to use
CVD instead of PVD because of its ability to form a uniform and detailed film on the internal and externalsurfaces of the specimens [30]. Furthermore, the composition and thickness of the film can be adjusted
depending on the parts. In addition, as can be seen from the results of XPS (Figs. 4 and 5), increase in Si was6Mitsuda et al.

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observed in the current study indicating that chemical bonding with silica, and the use of hydrophobic treatments
resulted in a decrease in surface free energy. The CVD group demonstrated significantly higher values ofmechanical strength when compared to the control group after storage for on days 28 after storage in water at
37˚C (p < 0.05) (Table 2). The mechanical effects of CVD treatment on the denture base resin were negligible
because this method did not involve the use of thermal energy. On the contrary, mechanical strength is thought
to be increased via chemical cross-linking.
The areas that attract plaque on the denture surfaces are the narrow grooves immediately below the clasps andthe inner surfaces of the denture base. These areas are not convex in shape and do not allow for easy polishing of
the surfaces. In general, when the prosthetic is inserted in the oral cavity, the surface needs to be polished inorder to tolerate the severe conditions in the oral environment. Dentures are polished for three specific reasons asfollows: esthetics, so that the shape and surface of the denture resembles the natural anatomy as closely as
possible; biological reasons, which include prevention of injury to the oral mucosa and tongue; and chemicalreasons, to avoid the accumulation of food debris and denture plaque [23]. Due to the high volume of denture
resin in the oral cavity, the level of comfort is largely dependent upon the smoothness of the surfaces.
Nevertheless, it is difficult to perform fine surface finishing in certain small areas such as the interdental papilladue to limited access. The hydrophobic surface modifications used in the current study were able to lower water
absorption by the denture resin and contributed to improvements in the self-cleaning of areas that are hard toreach. The results of the present study indicate that plasma CVD treatment of PMMA resin is an effective
denture surface modification method that adds the characteristic of stain resistance to commercially available
denture base materials.
Acknowledgment
This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP18K09670.
Conflict of Interest
None

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Correspondence to:
Dr. Satoshi Ino
Division of Prosthodontics, Department of Highly Advanced Stomatology, Graduate School of Dentistry,
Kanagawa Dental University, Yokohama Clinic
3-31-6, Tsuruya-cho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama 221-0835, Japan
Fax: +81-45-313-5048 E-mail: ino@kdu.ac.jp
Accepted December 14, 2018.
Copyright ©2019 by the Asian Pacific Journal of Dentistry.
Online ISSN 2185-3487, Print ISSN 2185-3479

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