Measurement of thermal expansion coefficient of human teeth

Abstract

The coefficient of thermal expansion of specimens from 60 freshly extracted human teeth were measured over the range 10-80 degrees C using a dilatometer. The coefficient increased rapidly above 50 degrees C, but there was no significant variation with tooth age between 10 and 70 years. The average values obtained were 16.96 (SD 3.83) x 10(-6)/degrees C for enamel, 10.59 (SD 2.38) x 10(-6)/degrees C for dentine, 11.90 (SD 4.42) x 10(-6)/degrees C for crowns and 9.44 (SD 0.61) x 10(-6)/degrees C for roots.