Objectives: To evaluate the effect of nanofiller loading on cure efficiency and potential color change of experimental composites.
Materials and methods: Four different polymeric materials were produced using the same organic matrix blend. To this matrix, different amounts of 0.05 μm fumed silica filler were added: no filler, 13, 52, and 65wt%. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to evaluate the degree of conversion (DC) for each composite using near-IR analysis, and spectrophotometry according to CIELab chromatic space was used to evaluate the color change.To induce color change, composites were artificially aged with exposure to cycles of UV-B light for 300 hours. Trasmission electron microscopy was used to illustrate nanoffiler aglomeration in the resin matrix. Data were analyzed using correlation analysis (α = 0.05).
Results: There was an excellent inverse linear correlation between filler wt% and either DC or color change. Greater changes to red (+Δa) and yellow (+Δb) were observed as the filler wt% increased.
Conclusions: A higher percentage of nano-sized filler particles in dental resin composites directly affects their cure efficiency and potential for color change.
Clinical significance: The increase in filler particle loading negatively affected monomer conversion and color stability of resin-based composites. As reduced filler loading results in poorer mechanical properties, to enhance color stability, resin-based composites should be formulated by making the refractive index of the polymeric matrix more closely match that of the filler throughout the polymerization process. (J Esthet Restor Dent, 2016).
© 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.