International journal of dentistry
A Study to Evaluate the Fracture Toughness of Denture Base Resin Reinforced With Nanomaterials as an Innovative Denture Base Resin
By Padhye A, Kumar SM, Isloor AM and 3 others.
Abstract
Objective
The most widely used denture base material, polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) resin, by itself exhibits poor fracture toughness. The present study aimed to assess the fracture toughness of this denture base resin incorporating calcium carbonate nanoparticles (CNPs) and titanium dioxide nanotubes (TNTs) in varying concentrations.
Materials and methods
Eighty-four heat-cured PMMA samples were prepared, divided into seven groups with 12 specimens each. TNTs and CNPs were incorporated into PMMA at concentrations of 0.1%, 0.2% and 0.3%, while unmodified PMMA served as the control. For both materials and composites, the characterisation was conducted through Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction, zeta potential (ZP) analysis, particle size (PS) measurement, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to ensure proper synthesis, integration and fabrication. The fracture toughness of each specimen was evaluated using a universal testing machine through a single-edge-notched three-point bending test. Statistical analysis involved ANOVA followed by post hoc Tukey tests to determine significant differences.