Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
200
300
400
Original
Remineralized
Eroded
Original
Remineralized
Eroded
Original
Remineralized
Eroded
200
200
100
100
0
0
0
-100
-200
-100
-200
-200
-400
-300
-600
-300
-400
3
6
9
12
15
0
3
6
9
0
3
6
9
12
Width/µm
Width/µm
Width/µm
Fig. 4.36
Profi le of scratches on the enamel surface [
63
]: (
a
)
F
n
= 10 mN; (
b
)
F
n
= 20 mN; (
c
)
F
n
= 40 Mn
250
Original
Eroded
Remineralized
200
150
100
50
0
10
20
40
Normal load/mN
Fig. 4.37
Wear volume of scratches on the enamel surface [
63
]
Nano-indentation/scratch testing results suggested that the nanomechanical and
anti-wear properties of the eroded enamel surface could be enhanced by remineral-
ization in artifi cial saliva, but the loss of the hardness and Young's modulus and the
decrease in the wear resistance of the enamel surface by acid erosion could not be
totally recovered through remineralization in artifi cial saliva.
The crystallinity and orientation of the crystals within the enamel have been
widely reported to play an extremely signifi cant role in the enamel's mechanical
properties [
51
,
57
,
64
]. Thus, the repair effect of remineralization on the mechanical
and tribological properties of the eroded enamel surface may strongly depend on
the crystal characteristic of the mineral deposition. For the original enamel surface, the
mineral substances were mostly the HA crystals with a high crystallinity, and the
crystals oriented along the rod axis [
10
], endowing the enamel with excellent mechan-
ical and antiwear properties. The AFM and XRD examinations demonstrated that a
