The Benefits of Wet Milling Zirconia

Contrary to claims to the contrary, there are many benefits to wet-machining zirconia. These benefits extend beyond the added expense and noise associated with the required filtration and vacuum systems required for dry milling applications. These vacuum and filtration systems, while removing a large amount of the caustic zirconia dust generated by the machining process, do not remove all of the dust- the balance of which becomes air born in the lab or dental office environment and creeps into machine components thereby compromising or shortening their operational lives.

Zirconia sludge (the mixture of zirconia and water) is by far easier to deal with than dry zirconia dust, does not infiltrate machine components and is significantly less destructive to machine components than caustic and abrasive dry zirconia swarf (by-products of the machining process).

Users not only enjoy longer machine and tool life, lower operating expense, and reduced system maintenance, but also realize the benefits of highly detailed and lustrous post-sinter units, superior surface finishes and sharp margins without extensive margin reinforcement- “do-overs" due to chipped or blown out margins are very rare and if present, usually attributed to worn tooling.

We recommend washing/cleaning out the machining area, of any mill, machining any material, be done daily as part of a preventative maintenance program. It does not take very long and is not difficult to do. Flushing with a water hose works well. Use of compressed air should be done carefully with low pressure, especially with "dry" machines that do not have adequate sealing of the machining enclosure.

Do this and the machine will reward you with smooth operation and longer, care-free life.

Zirconia Drying Times

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