Analysis of the Statistical Comparability of the Hardness and Wear of Polymeric Materials for Orthodontic Applications.

Ivo Domagała,Daniel Pieniak,Barbara Biedziak,Ireneusz Naworol,Anna Borucka,Leszek Gil,Mariana Levkiv,Marcel Firlej,Krzysztof Przystupa

doi:10.3390/ma14112925

Abstract

Background: Clinical success depends on the contact strength and wear resistance of medical devices made of polymer materials. The scientific goal resulted from the problem of using different methods of surface evaluation of materials used in the production of orthodontic appliances. The purpose of the work was an experimental comparative assessment of indentation hardness and scratch hardness and the sliding wear of four selected polymeric materials used in the manufacture of orthodontic appliances. Methods: Four commercial materials were compared. Shore hardness tests and a scratch test with a Rockwell indenter were performed. A sliding wear test was performed using the ball-on-disc method. Statistical PCA and correlation analyses were performed. Results: The results of scratch hardness measurements using a contact profilometer correlated with the Shore hardness to a greater extent than measurements made using an optical microscope. PCA showed that Shore hardness explains 45% of the total variance in all the results across the materials. Conclusions: The scratch hardness method allows for a more explicit ranking of orthodontic polymeric materials when measurements are made with a profilometer. The ranking of sliding wear resistance should be made separately.

Highlights

A significant number of medical devices’ parts are nowadays manufactured from polymeric materials [1]
The basic descriptive statistics of the Shore indentation hardness test results obtained in each material group are shown inof 1 and indentation their graphical presentation in a obtained box plot
Table and the graphical presentation of the results descriptive statistics presented in Table 12 and the graphical presentation of the results shown in in the the box box plot plot (Figure (Figure 12)

Summary

Introduction

A significant number of medical devices’ parts are nowadays manufactured from polymeric materials [1]. Polymers are used both as coating materials and for components made entirely of this material [2,3]. Many researchers deal with the useful properties of polymer medical devices [4]. Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) has found wide use in the healthcare field. It is used in orthopedics, prosthodontic dentistry, and many other medical devices [15,16]

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Conclusion