Micromechanical analysis of nanoparticle-reinforced dental composites

The mechanical behavior of TiO2 nanoparticle-reinforced resin-based dental composites was characterized in this work using a three-dimensional nanoscale representative volume element. The impacts of nanoparticle volume fraction, aspect ratio, stiffness and interphase zone between the resin matrix and nanoparticle on the bulk properties of the composite were characterized. Results clearly demonstrated the mechanical advantage of nanocomposites in comparison to microfiber reinforced composites. The bulk response of the nanocomposite could be further enhanced with the increased nanoparticle volume fraction, or aspect ratio, while the influence of nanoparticle stiffness was minimal. The effective Young’s modulus and yield strength of the composite was also significantly affected by the interphase stiffness. Results obtained in this work could provide insights for the optimization of nanoparticle-reinforced dental composites.