INFLUENTIAL FACTORS ON MEASUREMENTS OF THE TRIBOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF DENTAL COMPOSITE MATERIALS IN EVALUATION USING A PIN-ON-DISK TRIBOMETER: A REVIEW

Plenty of dental restorative composite materials are available in the market, which makes it challenging to select a good wear-resistant material. The durability of different dental materials in human mouth depends on tribological characteristics of the materials. Clinical efficacy of the restorative materials cannot be predicted just based on tribological characteristics. Nevertheless, these characteristics still can support the investigation of the consequences of modifications to their composition. Numerous laboratory studies have been used to characterize the tribological properties of the materials, which helped clinicians in selecting the appropriate dental materials. This article reviews the important influential factors while evaluating the tribological properties of dental composite materials using a pin-on-disk tribometer, including surface roughness of the specimen, normal load, type of pin material, pH level, loading cycle, and abrasive medium. The influences of the factors on measurements of tribological characteristics and the rules for selection of restorative materials are also discussed.