Kuraray Noritake Esthetic Colorant

Creating monolithic restorations that truly mimic natural enamel and dentin is both rewarding and challenging. Patients expect restorations that disappear seamlessly in the mouth, yet porcelain layering is time-consuming and not always practical. A “minimally invasive” approach can be just as valuable for dental technicians, improving efficiency while preserving artistry.

One product I rely on is Esthetic Colorant, which allows technicians to adjust dentin and enamel shades in the green state. This provides depth and vitality from within the zirconia—without layering porcelain.

Internal Color Made Simple

Natural teeth exhibit subtle variations—cervical saturation, incisal translucency, and internal shading—that bring them to life. Traditionally, replicating these nuances required complex layering or surface stains.

Esthetic Colorant, a water-based infiltration system, penetrates pre-sintered zirconia and fuses during sintering. The result is intrinsic depth and stable color effects that do not rely on surface applications.

Practical Workflow

• After Milling: Apply colorant to milled monolithic or anatomical restorations.

• Application Tools: A metal-free brush—or Kuraray’s Liquid Brush Pen—ensures precise control of cervical chroma, fissures, and incisal translucency.

• Diffusion & Fixation: Colorants penetrate evenly and fuse during sintering—no extra bake required.

• Final Result: Lifelike restorations with intrinsic esthetics.

Micro Cutback: The Canvas Technique

Anterior cases with minimal porcelain space are notoriously demanding. With the Canvas technique, a micro cutback transforms the surface into a painter’s canvas. Cervical shading, subtle blue or grey translucency, and incisal value adjustments are built in pre-sintering. After sintering, translucent porcelains add final depth and vitality.

Elite Use: Opaque Shade

Opaque shade is indispensable for controlling value and blocking dark preps, stumps, or metal substructures. Applied pre-sintering, it ensures predictable outcomes in screw-retained hybrids, Ti bases, or full-arch cases.

Where Esthetic Colorants Shine

• Posterior Monolithics: Enhance fissures and occlusal details without layering.

• Anterior Restorations: Create incisal halos with Blue, Grey, and Orange.

• Full-Arch Cases: Achieve consistent shade and tissue characterization, including Pink for gingival zones.

Peer-to-Peer Perspective

Esthetic Colorant bridges artistry and efficiency. When combined with multilayered zirconia, it helps labs deliver esthetic, predictable results more quickly and with greater confidence.

Conclusion

Kuraray Noritake’s Esthetic Colorant elevates zirconia esthetics by embedding natural tooth effects from within. Combined with KATANA Zirconia YML, it enables restorations that balance efficiency, predictability, and artistry. For implant cases, Opaque remains one of my go-to solutions, ensuring consistency and expanding what is possible in zirconia restorations.

Internal effects are locked into the zirconia itself, ensuring long-term natural esthetics. 

 

Edgar Muñoz, TPD
International Noritake Instructor
Senior Lab Product Specialist

 

Tips

› Internal characterization builds the foundation of your restoration, reducing guesswork later.

› Use Opaque to eliminate shadows and achieve consistency without extra layering.

› For challenging single centrals or tight spaces, combine the Canvas technique with Opaque to block dark areas and set the stage for final translucency.

 

Manufacturer Information

Kuraray America, Inc.
Esthetic Colorants are available at:
Katanazirconia.com/buy-now