Dental Materials
Lec. 2 ضياء رشيد.د
Mechanical Properties
One of the most important properties of dental material is the ability to withstand
the various mechanical forces placed on them during their use as restoration,
impression, models, appliances & tools.
Strength: is the measure of the resistance of the material to the externally applied
forces.
Types of strength:
1. Transverse Strength:
It is the strength of the middle of a beam which is supported only at its ends, it is
important in dental bridges.
2. Fatigue Strength:
Occurs when the material constantly subjected to change in shape due to frequent
application of force like clasp arm of partial denture.
3. Impact Strength:
It is the ability of the material to break on sudden impact. Low impact strength
means brittle material, like dropping of the denture.
Stress: is the force per unit area induced in a body in response to some externally
applied force. It is force / area measured in Kg/ cm² or Pound/ inch² or Pascal.
Strain: is the change in dimension per unit dimension caused by externally applied
forces. It is a unit less quantity.
Strain= final length - original length / original length
** Percentage of elongation= strain x 100%
Types of Stress: Every stress is accompanied by a strain of the same type. There
are different types of stresses according to the direction of the applied force.
A- Tensile stress: it is the force per unit area produced in the material in response
to externally applied force which tends to stretch or elongate the material. Tensile
stress is usually accompanied by tensile strain.
B- Compressive stress: it is the force per unit area induced in the material in
response to externally applied force which tends to compress or shorten the
material; it is usually accompanied by compressive strain. Investment materials,
restorative materials & models should have high compressive strength.
C- Shear stress: it is the force per unit area induced in the material in response to
externally applied force, one part of the force is in one direction while the other is
in the opposite direction. Shear force is the force which cause tearing a paper or
card. If one part of the crown is in occlusion while the rest is not, shear stress will
develop. It is accompanied by shear strain.
Usually, three types of stress occur at the same time, if a piece of metal is being
bend it will exhibit tensile stress on the outer surface, compressive on the inner &
shear in the middle.
Stress- Strain Curve:
Proportional limit: When a stress is applied to a material, the material will tend to
deform (change in shape & dimension) in an amount proportional to the magnitude
of applied stress. The greatest stress which may be produced in the material such
that the stress is directly proportional to the strain. Its unit is the same of the stress.
Elastic deformation (elastic limit): The greatest stress to which the material can be
subjected such that it will return to its original shape & dimension when the stress
is removed.
If the stress is increase beyond the elastic limit or the proportional limit the
material will deform & if we remove the stress the material will not return to its
dimension, this is called plastic deformation.
If the stress is increased more& more the material will break.
Ultimate strength (point): It is the greatest stress which breaks the material
(fracture).
Modulus of Elasticity: It is the constant of proportionality; it is when any stress
value equal or less than the proportional limit is divided by its corresponding strain
value. The unit is the same of that of stress
Y (Modulus of elasticity) = stress/ strain
Flexibility: The higher strain which occurs when the material is stressed to its
proportional limit.
Stiffness: Is just the opposite to property of flexibility.
Ductility: It is the ability of the material to withstand permanent deformation
under tensile stress without fracture; it depends on plasticity & tensile strength, it's
the ability of the material to be drawn into a fine wire.
Brittleness: It is the opposite of ductility; it requires lack of plasticity.
Malleability: It is the ability of the material to withstand permanent deformation
under compressive stress without fracture. It's the ability of the material to be
drawn into sheet.
Toughness: It is the total work or energy required to break the material. It's the
total area under the stress - strain curve. It requires strength & elasticity.
Resilience: The amount of energy absorbed by a structure when it is stressed
within the proportional limit.
Hardness: It is the resistance of the material to deformation caused by penetrating
or scratching the surface, it is done either by using steal ball (Brinell or Rocwell
test) or using diamond ball ( Vicker & Knoop test). The higher the number the
harder the material.