Influence of Enamel Stylus Stiffness on the Sliding-wear Behavior of a Composite Restorative

Abstract
The wear behavior of a composite restorative in sliding contact with a stylus fashioned from human enamel has been investigated as a function of the effective stiffness of the stylus-restorative contact. The results demonstrate that: (1) the stiffness parameter affects wear surface morphology of both the composite and the enamel; and (2) a decrease in stiffness produces a larger variance in the rate of wear of a composite, but this factor has no significant effect on the average wear-rate for the material and test conditions explored.