TESTING OF THE FRACTURE RESISTANCE OF THE HEAT-CURING DENTURE BASE ACRYLIC RESIN

For many years, poly-methyl methacrylate has been used as a material of choice for making the denture base, thanks to its good and desirable performances, such as: simplicity in work, possibility of reparation, aesthetics and affordable price. Considering to its insufficient hardness and fracture resistance, there is a tendency to improve the mechanical properties of the material, by changing its basic composition. The aim of the research was to determine the fracture resistance of the heat-curing denture base acrylic resin materials. Materials and methods: For the research ,20 samples of the 2 heat-curing acrylics had been prepared, standard ones and reinforced acrylic resin material. After the storage in the saline for 15 days, measurements of the fracture resistance were performed by using the universal testing device. The data were statistically processed using the Student’s t-test for independent samples. Results: By measuring the flexural strength and deflection at breakage, it has been proven that there was, statistically, a significant difference of the flexural strength between reinforced (179.91-248.72MPa) and standard heat-curing acrylics (183.25- 200.74MPa). The deflection at breakage showed approximately the same values for both materials (1,0-1,4mm; 1.0-1.5mm). Conclusion: By enhancing the polymer, the mechanical properties of the denture base acrylic resin materials will be improved, primarily, higher fracture resistance, that means that these technologies need to be improved.