Abstract
Aims: This study aimed to assess the effect of incorporating different concentrations of MgO nanoparticles on some mechanical properties of room-temperature vulcanized) RTV) maxillofacial silicone material.
Materials and Methods: A total of 120 silicone specimens were constructed,40 specimens for each mechanical property, which are tear, tensile, and hardness groups, and each group was divided into four subgroups according to MgO Nps concentration (0%, 1%, 2%, and 3%) groups with 10 specimens for each one. Silicone and MgO Nps were mixed and cured according to their standardization procedures. Tear and tensile strength were estimated by utilizing a universal testing machine; Shore A hardness was estimated with a durometer. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was used to check the chemical integrity and molecular interactions between silicone and MgO NPs.
Results: One-way ANOVA showed that the addition of MgO NPs significantly changed the mechanical properties of silicone elastomers (p ≤ 0.05). Both tear and tensile strength reached their highest values at 2% MgO Nps, followed by 1% MgO Nps, and then declined at 3% MgO Nps concentration. Post-hoc pairwise comparison reveals no significant difference between the 1% and 3% groups for the tear strength test and no significant difference between the control and 3% groups for tensile strength. Shore A hardness increased as the concentration of MgO NPs increased from 1% to 3%, with a significant difference among all groups. FTIR showed the same peak intensities in the control and experimental groups, indicating that no changes or molecular interactions had occurred.
Conclusion: The incorporation of MgO nanoparticles affected the tested mechanical properties of RTV maxillofacial silicone. The concentration of 2% was considered the ideal percentage of MgO NPs for both tear and tensile strength; higher concentrations further increase surface hardness but reduce the overall material strength parameter.