Comparison of thermal conductivity ,compressive strength and tensile strength of reinforced acrylic resin with silver nano particles and conventional acrylic resin

Abstract

Polymethyl methacrylate, PMMA, is widely used in prosthodontics for fabrication of removable prostheses.Many advantages such as good esthetic, biocompatibility and easy handling can be mentioned. Materials and Methods. In ths study, 54 samples including 3 groups for thermal conductivity, compressive and tensile strengths were fabricated . Each group was divided into 3 subgroups including 2 case an 1 control group The silver nanoparticles were mixed with acrylic resin in an amalgamator in two groups with 0.2 and 2 wt% of nanosilver. After curing, the specimens were removed from the molds and the tests were conducted. One way Anova test was used for data analysis. P value 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results. This study showed that the mean thermal conductivity of PMMA reinforced with nanosilver was significantly higher than that of the unmodified PMMA (P<0.05).Also mean compressive strength of PMMA reinforced with nanosilver was significantly higher than that of the unmodified PMMA (P<0.05). However, the tensile strength was not significantly different between the 0.2% group and unmodified PMMA and it decreased significantly after incorporation of 2% nanosilver (P<0.05). Conclusions. Based on the results and the desirable effect of nanoparticles of silver with 0.2 wt% on improvement of thermal conductivity and compressive strength of PMMA, use of this material with proper concentration in the palatal area of maxillary acrylic resin dentures is recommended