Fiber reinforcements to enhance mechanical properties of composite fillings

INTRODUCTION. This study compared the mechanical performance of short E-glass fiber (sFRC) reinforcement with woven polyethylene ribbon reinforcement, both embedded in the same nanofilled resin. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Fifty specimens ( n = 25 per group) were fabricated and mechanical properties were tested. T-tests were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS. sFRC showed significantly higher values than polyethylene ribbon reinforcement across all measured parameters. Mean fracture resistance was 1196.92 N for sFRC and 1028.36 N for polyethylene. Tensile strength was 49.69 MPa versus 45.36 MPa, and fatigue limit averaged 420,174 versus 301,191 cycles. CONCLUSIONS. Short E-glass fiber reinforcement improved mechanical properties compared with polyethylene ribbon reinforcement. These findings suggest sFRC is a strong candidate for bulk reinforcement in high-load restorations.