Properties used to characterize

materials
Section - 1

By

Dr Shahbaz Khan

BDS, M Phil
Senior Lecturer
Dental Materials Department
BUMHS
 Material ???
The matter from which something can be made

- Both wood/ timber & stones/rocks are types of materials

- Wood can be utilized for manufacturing furniture, as building material etc.
- Whereas, rocks are used in different construction and building processes
- Wood & rock are two different types of materials with considerably
different properties
 Physical nature of material

A single material can be processed

by different methods to achieve
different final products
 Characteristics ???
Property or feature

Characterize or characterization ???

To describe or explain or investigate properties of
something
 Characteristics & Characterization

Characteristics
Can be burned & produce heat
Can be cut with a saw
Can be finished & polished
Characterization
Which type of wood have highest
burning ability & heat production
Which one would be hardest to cut
Which type would possess smoothest
and shiniest finish
So up to now, we have discussed that;

- Any matter that can be used in any application can be termed

as a material

- There are different materials, which possess different

properties or characteristics

- A single material can be processed differently for different

applications
 Classes of materials
1- Metals
The Metals handbook (1992) defines metal as a opaque
lustrous chemical substance that is a good conductor of heat
and electricity and, when polished, is a good reflector of light
Or any element that ionizes positively in solution is
characterized as metal. In pure metals, atoms are arranged in
closely packed crystal lattices. Metals are typically hard,
shiny and have good electrical and thermal conductivity.
2- Polymers

The term polymer refers to a chemical compound consisting

of large organic molecules which is made up of many (poly)
repeating units (mers). The structural units from which
polymers are made are called monomers.
3- Ceramics

Ceramics are inorganic compounds with non-metallic

properties typically composed of metallic and nonmetallic
elements. The term ceramic literally means burnt stuff, that
is materials processed at elevated temperatures or by firing.
4- Composites
A composite material is made from two or more constituent
materials (classes of materials) with considerably different
physical and chemical properties, that when combined,
produce a material with characteristics different from
individual materials.
Opacity of different
materials

Nail- made from metal

has highest opacity in
this radiograph

Bone- a natural
composite of ceramic
and polymeric materials
has greater opacity then
soft tissues made from
polymeric materials

Soft tissues
 Usage of Dental Materials

Materials used in dentistry are generally supplied as two or more

components.

When these components are mixed, they undergo a chemical

reaction during which the mechanical and physical properties
change dramatically.

To understand the steps involved in usage of dental materials, we

will discuss the usage of a common household item
Household example of material usage
Proportioning

Mixing
Manipulation
Setting
 Properties used to characterize materials

The acceptance of dental products by dentist depends

upon its properties during;

- Unmixed state.

- Proportioning, mixing and setting.

- Set state.
END