Linear polymers have been commonly used as dental composite. However the aim of this work is to use hyperbranched polymer in an attempt to produce dental composite. The reason is because the dendritic molecules have shown low viscosity at higher molecular weight compared to the linear counterparts. Therefore, this work attempts to substitute the linear polymer with as much of hyperbranched polymer in the dental composite that would pass the required ISO 4049:1998(E) "Dentistry - Resin-based filling material". Several formulations of dental composites were used, i.e. combinations of linear-linear and linear-hyperbranched polymers for comparison. Following this, physical and mechanical characterisation were conducted based on the ISO standards such as water sorption and water solubility. Other characterisation such as polymerisation shrinkage and Vickers hardness were also evaluated. It was found that different types of resins give different physical and mechanical properties. The maximum achievable hyperbranched polymer, which passes the required ISO standard, that can be incorporated in the linear polymer to form dental composite is 43% wt.
Acrylic Resins/*standards ; Biomechanics ; Composite Resins/*standards ; *Materials Testing ; Polymers/*standards ; Polyurethanes/*standards ; Reference Standards

The latest progress in shape-memory polymer for biomedical engineering applications was summarized in this paper. The mechanism responsible for shape memory effect was analyzed in reference to the polymer structure. Also introduced and reviewed were the characteristics of some shape-memory polymers (polyurethane polycaprolactone and polylactide) and their applications in medical engineering.
Alloys ; standards ; Biomedical Engineering ; Corrosion ; Elasticity ; Equipment and Supplies ; standards ; Materials Testing ; Polyesters ; standards ; Polymers ; standards ; Polyurethanes ; standards