Results are presented for wear tests on human molar enamel in silica particle mediums. Data for different particle concentrations show severe wear indicative of material removal by plasticity-induced microcrack formation, in accordance with earlier studies. The wear rates are independent of low vol% particles, consistent with theoretical models in which occlusal loads are distributed evenly over all interfacial microcontacts. However, perhaps counter-intuitively, the wear rate diminishes substantially at higher vol%. This is attributed to a greater proportion of lower-load microcontacts transitioning into a region of mild wear, where microcracking is suppressed. Implications of these results in relation to evolutionary biology and dentistry are explored.
Keywords: Enamel wear; Microcracking; Silicate particles; Wear rate.
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