Comparison of silorane and methacrylate-based composite resins on the curing light transmission

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of different composite resins - Filtek P90 (silorane-based composite) and Heliomolar (methacrylate-based composite) - on light transmission and decrease in Knoop hardness between the bottom and top of cured specimens. The irradiance of a light-curing unit (LCU) was measured with a power meter (Ophir Optronics; 900 mw/cm2) and spectral distributions were obtained using a spectrometer (USB 2000). Twenty standardized cylindrical specimens (2 mm thick x 7 mm diameter) of each composite resin were obtained by curing using the LCU for 40 s. Light energy transmission through the composite was calculated (n=10). The Knoop hardness number for each surface was recorded as the mean of 3 indentations. The difference in Knoop hardness between the top and bottom (DKH) of the same specimen was calculated (n=10). The irradiance of light that passed through Filtek P90 (272 mW/cm2) was not significantly greater than that the passed through Heliomolar (271 mW/cm2). The DKH of Filtek P90 (25%) was significantly higher than that of Heliomolar (12%). There was a greater degree of subsurface polymerization of the methacrylate-based composite compared to the silorane-based composite.