Effect of Different Mixing and Placement Methods on the Compressive Strength of Calcium-Enriched Mixture

INTRODUCTION The aim of this experimental laboratory study was to evaluate the effect of different mixing and placement techniques on compressive strength (CS) of calcium-enriched mixture (CEM) cement. METHODS AND MATERIALS CEM powder was mixed with its liquid either by hand mixing or amalgamator mixing. The mixture was loaded to cylindrical acrylic molds with 6.0±0.1 mm height and 4.0±1 mm diameter. Half of the specimens in each group were selected randomly and ultrasonic energy was applied to them for 30 sec. All samples were incubated for 7 days at 37(°)C. The CS test was performed by means of a universal testing machine. The data were analyzed by the two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's post hoc tests. The level of significance was set at 0.05. RESULTS The maximum CS was seen in the amalgamator-mixed samples that did not receive ultrasonic agitation. The CS value of amalgamator-mixed samples was significantly higher than manually-mixed ones (P=0.003). Ultrasonic vibration did not change the CS of specimens. CONCLUSION According to the results, mixing with amalgamator increases the CS of CEM cement, while ultrasonic vibration had no positive effect.