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Methods for Examining the Fatigue and Fracture Behavior of Hard Tissues

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Abstract

An understanding of the fatigue and fracture behavior of hard tissues (e.g., bone and tissues of the human tooth) is critical to the maintenance of physical and oral health. Recent studies suggest that there are a number of mechanisms contributing to crack extension and crack arrest in these materials, and that they appear to be a function of moisture and age of the tissue. An understanding of these processes can provide new ideas that are relevant to the design of multi-functional engineering materials. As a result, we have adopted the use of microscopic Digital Image Correlation (DIC) to examine the mechanisms of crack growth resistance and near-tip displacement distribution for cracks in human dentin that are subjected to opening mode loads. We have also developed a special compact tension (CT) specimen that permits evaluation of crack extension within small portions of tissue under both quasi-static and fatigue loads. The specimen embodies a selected portion of hard tissue within a resin composite restorative and enables an examination of diseased tissue, or portion with specific physiology, that would otherwise be impossible to evaluate. In this paper we describe application of these experimental methods and present some recent results concerning fatigue crack growth and stable crack extension in dentin and across the dentin-enamel-junction (DEJ) of human teeth.

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Notes

  1. Optibond® Solo Plus resin adhesive, Kerr, Orange, CA (Lot #410833).

  2. Ultra-Lume® LED 5 curing light; Ultradent Products, Inc, Provo, Utah.

  3. Vit-l-escence resin composite; Ultradent, Provo, Utah (Lot #A0403).

  4. SMZ-800 Steromicroscope; Nikon, Tokyo, Japan.

  5. CV-A1 CCD camera; JAI America Inc., Laguna Hills, CA.

  6. ABAQUS Version 6.5; ABAQUS Inc., Providence. RI.

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Acknowledgement

This research was supported in part by the National Science Foundation (BES 0238237) and the American Association of Endodontists Foundation. The author A. Nazari wishes to acknowledge support from a GAANN Fellowship and the lead author would like to thank the Education Committee of Shanghai and Pujiang Project for partial support (Grant no. 04AB59).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanics, Shanghai University, 99 Shangda Rd, Shanghai, 200444, People’s Republic of China

    D. Zhang

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA

    A. Nazari, M. Soappman, D. Bajaj & D. Arola (SEM member)

  3. Department of Endodontics, Prosthodontics, and Operative Dentistry, Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA

    D. Arola (SEM member)

Authors
  1. D. Zhang
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  2. A. Nazari
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  3. M. Soappman
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  4. D. Bajaj
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  5. D. Arola
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to D. Arola.

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Zhang, D., Nazari, A., Soappman, M. et al. Methods for Examining the Fatigue and Fracture Behavior of Hard Tissues. Exp Mech 47, 325–336 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11340-006-9024-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11340-006-9024-6

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