Abstract
Clear aligners are popular in the field of dental orthodontic treatment because they offer a discreet alternative to braces due to their use of transparent materials. They are formed from flat transparent polymer materials by hot pressed molding. It is necessary to know the mechanical properties of the polymer materials to be able to form the exact shapes of the clear aligners. However, this information is not publicly available. In this study, we present a method to reliably measure the mechanical properties of clear aligner polymer materials and analyze the factors effecting these mechanical properties. First, we surveyed standards related to the mechanical properties of polymer materials to obtain reliable data. Consequently, ISO 527 was selected for use in this study because of the size and thickness of the flat transparent polymer material. The uniaxial tensile tester was constructed and it was verified whether displacement of a crosshead could be regarded as a displacement of gauge-length by optical analysis. Uniaxial tensile tests of three thicknesses from three different companies were performed and each engineering stress-strain curve was measured. Tensile strengths and elastic moduli were obtained by analysis of the stress-strain curves. The tensile strength and elastic modulus of ISO 527 was found to be approximately 50MPa and 2.3GPa, respectively. Both values showed material and thickness dependency.
