Objective To evaluate the effect of K2O addition on the crystallization property of dental glass-ceram-ics in the Li2O-SiO2-Al2O3-P2O5-ZnO system. Methods Different content of K2O was added into Li2O-SiO2-Al2O3-P2O5-ZnO glass system. The heat-treated system of the glass-ceramics was determined by differential thermal analyses（DTA）, then the crystallization components and the microstructure of the glass-ceramics with different content of K2O were investigated from X-ray diffraction（XRD） analyses and scanning electron microscopy（SEM）. Results Addition of K2O helped to reduce the viscosity of the glass system and improved crystallization. More lithium disilicate crystals appeared after heated-treatment of the glass system which contained 5.3wt% addition of K2O, and the homogeneously lath-shaped crystals were 4 μm in length. Conclusion Certain content of K2O can improve the crystallization property of dental glass-ceramics in the Li2O-SiO2-Al2O3-P2O5-ZnO system.
