Dental materials

Summer course 2007-2008 Dr. Hanan AlZraikat

Oral environment and patient consideration

The oral environment represents a challenge to the success of dental materials. Understanding these challenges and limitations, is essential for a successful treatment. Materials must be biocompatible, aesthetic and durable. As a member of the allied dental team, you need to appreciate these factors & have a thorough knowledge of selection criteria and materials manipulation.

Intraoral factors
Force and stress: a. Compressive: crushing biting forces b. Tensile: biting force stretches a material c. Shear: e.g. an incisor used for cutting

 Resisting these forces creates stress within the material, which may lead to deformation, strain. Dental materials can withstand one type of stress while fail under another. But failure usually occurs after repetitive force application i.e. fatigue failure.

 Moisture and acid levels: Intraoral pH depends on diet and acid producing bacteria. Moisture affects materials during placement or over time. Low solubility contributes to longevity. Some materials take up water, color, odor, tastes of foods and beverages (e.g. resins, acrylic). Metals (except noble metals) are affected by acid and moisture, i.e. corrosion: to wear out due to chemical rxn. Dental amalgam is susceptible to tarnish (discoloration caused by oxidation of metal).

 Galvanism: an electric current transmitted between two dissimilar metals. Temperature: Dimensional changes (expansion/contraction) Coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE): measurement of dimensional changes. Percolation: opening and closing of a gap between tooth and restoration due to expansion and contraction of restoration. This may lead to recurrent caries, staining, pulp irritation. Thermal conductivity and insulators (pulp sensitivity). Exothermic rxn of restorative material.

Retention: the ability of the material to

maintain its position and resist displacement Mechanical: undercuts e.g. amalgam Chemical: e.g. glass ionomer cements Bonding: a term used to describe how composite is bonded to tooth surface (micromechanical/chemical). Affected by:
Wetting Viscosity Film thickness Surface characteristics: cleanliness, moisture contamination, texture, energy.

 Microleakage: the seepage of harmful materials through the gap between tooth and restoration. Can cause:
Staining Recurrent caries Sensitivity

 Biocompatibility: dental material must not have an adverse effect on living tissue
Materials used on hard tissue vs. soft tissue Short term vs. long term exposure Small doses vs. high doses (fluoride treatment) Adverse effects maybe due to materials itself or the breakdown of its components.

 Esthetics
Color components:
Hue: dominant color of wavelength detected

(tooth color is seen in yellow and brown range)

Chroma: color intensity or strength Value: how bright or dark a color is.

Transparent vs. opaque Shade guide

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 Conditions for assessing restorations:

Dry field Good lighting Sharp explorer Radiographs Magnification Good knowledge of material

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End of part one

Reference: Dental materials Clinical applications for dental assistants and dental hygienists (ch. 2)

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Material properties
Physical properties: properties based on the laws of mechanics, optics, thermodynamics, electricity etc.
(Phillips science of dental materials)

A. Rheological properties (ref. Introduction to dental

materials ch.1.8)

Definition: The study of flow or deformation of materials. Solids: elasticity and viscoelsticity Liquids: viscosity = shear stress/shear strain

Consider extrusion of a fluid from syringe.

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 Viscosity: resistance of a liquid to flow. The ways in which materials flow or deform under stress are important to their use in dentistry.
Thixotropic material: is a material that becomes less viscous when subject to repeated pressure (e.g. plaster, prophylaxis paste).

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B. Mechanical properties (ref. Dental Materials,

properties and manipulation)

Properties defined by the laws of mechanics; the physical science that deals with energy and forces and their effects on bodies. Maximum biting force decreases from molars to incisors. Average biting force
1st and 2nd molars = 580 N Bicuspids (premolars) = 310 N Cuspids (canines) = 220 N Incisors = 180 N Artificial replacement of dentition decreases biting force (e.g. fixed bridge, partial and complete dentures)

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 To compare the performance of materials irrespective of their shape or size, an objective standard is needed. This standard is stress and strain. Description of mechanical properties depends on these two. Stress = force/unit area (compressive, tensile, shear) Strain: the deformation per unit of length as a result of force = deformation/length (e.g. rubber vs. gold alloy)
Force (N) Area (mm) Stress (MPa) 111 111 111 111 645 64.5 6.45 0.645 0.1724 1.724 17.24 172.4

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 Stress-strain curves are a convenient way to compare materials mechanical properties whether in compression, tension or shear, especially when strain is independent of the length of time the load is applied

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 Strain-time curves are sometimes used when strain depends on the time the load is maintained (e.g. alginate, rubber impression material)

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 Values resulting from stress-strain curves:

Elastic modulus = stress/ strain (MPa), a measure of stiffness which is resistance to deformation measured by Youngs modulus Proportional limit: measure of stress allowed before permanent deformation occurs. Ultimate strength: maximum amount of strength a material can withstand without breaking.
*Note: some materials can be classified as clinical failure when significant permanent deformation occurs even if the material does not fracture

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 Other mechanical properties Elasticity: the ability to stretch and not break (impression material and undercuts)
Elastic (recovery immediate) vs. viscoelastic (recovery slow or with some degree of permanent deformation

Toughness: ability of the material to resist fracture Resilience: the ability of the material to resist permanent deformation Creep: time-dependent plastic strain of a material under a static load or constant stress.

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 Hardness: resistance to wear or abrasion (enamel and porcelain are among the hardest). Hardness is measured using several tests such as Knoop, or Vickers hardness tests Fatigue properties (refer to slides only): Materials are subjected to intermittent stress over long period of time, stress is small, but over time, failure may occur by a fatigue process. This involves the formation of microcracks, resulting from stress concentration at a surface fault, so crack propagates until fracture occurs. Final fracture occurs at a low stress level.

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Fatigue is studied in 2 ways:

1. Fatigue life: application of stress cycles at a certain amount and frequency and observe number of cycles needed to cause failure. 2. Fatigue limit: select a number of cycles (e.g. 10 000) and determine the value of the cyclic stress which is required to cause fracture within this number of cycles.

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 Ultimate strength values of selected dental materials

Material Dentine Enamel Tensile strength 98 10 Compressive strength 297 400

Amalgam Gold alloys Composite Porcelain

48-69 414-828 34-62 40

310-483 ----200-345 150

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C.

Thermal properties: (ref. Dental Materials, properties and

manipulation)

Materials have different rates of conducting heat. (Metals have higher values compared to plastics and ceramics). Therefore patients may experience postoperative sensitivity in association with amalgam restorations for instance.
Thermal conductivity: its a measure of heat transferred through a material or rate of heat flow. Enamel and dentine are poor thermal conductors compared to amalgam and gold alloys. Therefore insulators are required in some cases to protect the pulp. Coefficient of thermal expansion (explained previously)

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D.

Electrical properties:
manipulation)

(ref. Dental Materials, properties and

Galvanism: generated electrical current a patient can feel resulting from dissimilar metals present in a solution that contains ions (e.g. oral cavity)
Corrosion: can result from

adjacent dissimilar metals. Galvanic action can cause the metal to dissolve resulting in pitting and roughness. Chemical corrosion

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E. Solubility and sorption: (ref. Dental Materials,

properties and manipulation)

important criteria for dental materials selection. Laboratory studies are used to evaluate and rank materials. Sorption includes:
Absorption: uptake of liquid by solid e.g. uptake of water by acrylic plastics Adsorption: concentration of molecules at the surface of solid or liquid e.g. adsorption of saliva on tooth surface

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F.

Wettability: (ref. Dental Materials, properties and manipulation) measure of the affinity of a liquid for a solid indicated by spreading of a drop e.g. wetting of denture base by saliva. Wetting of enamel surface by pits and fissures. wettability is observed by shape of a drop of liquid on solid surface identified by contact angle: Low contact angle = high wettability (hydrophilic if liquid is water) High contact angle = low wettability (hydrophobic if liquid is water)

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Good wetting of a solid by a liquid with low contact angle (left), poor wetting forming a high contact angle (right).

liquid

liquid

solid

solid

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G. Optical properties: (ref. Introduction to dental materials)

Every object we see is as a result of reflectance of light from that object reaching an extremely sensitive photodetector, namely the eye. This is characterized by: Color (Hue, value, chroma)

Translucency: Translucent materials allows some light to pass, absorbs some, and scatters the rest Opaque material does not transmit light, but absorbs and scatters it. Surface texture: the polishability of a material is an important criteria for selection *Metamerism: change of color of an object due to a change in light source

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Shade guide and selection

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H. Biological properties: (ref. applied dental materials

ch.2)

Primary requirements of any dental material:

Non-toxic Non-irritant Should not have carcinogenic or allergic potential If used as filling material should be harmless to pulp

Biological evaluation of dental materials:

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3

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