The Effect of the Thermopress Curing Technique on the Water Sorption and Solubility of the Cold and Heat–Cured Acrylic Resins

Aims: This study aims to evaluate the effect of the thermopress curing technique on the water sorption and solubility of the cold–cured and heat–cured acrylic resins and compared this technique with the bench curing technique used for the cold–cured resin and with the conventional water bath curing technique for the heat–cured resin. Materials and Methods: they were to measure the water sorption and solubility, the specimens were prepared as disks with a dimension according to the ADA Specification No. 12. So specimens were divided into five groups depending on the type of the resin ( cold and heat– cured ) methods of curing which were ( thermopress, conventional water bath and bench cure ) and the time of curing cycle. Specimens were weighed before and after immersion in the distilled water and after drying with silica gel using an electronic balance to measure the water sorption and solubility. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Duncan , s multiple range test was performed to determined the significant different between the mean values among the tested groups at (p< 0.05) level of significance. Results: There is a significant differences between the water sorption and solubility of resin that cured by the different curing methods and different curing cycle times. The water sorption and solubility of resin specimens that cured by thermopress have the higher values. Conclusions: The water sorption and solubility of the cold and heat–cured acrylic resins is affected by the curing method. The curing under higher pressure produces specimens with lower water sorption and solubility values.