Surface roughness of conventional and 3D printed resins as a function of different cleaning processes: a scanning electron microscopy approach

Aims: This study aimed to the investigate the effect of different cleaning methods on the surface roughness of conventional polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and three-dimensional printed (3D) acrylic resin material. Methods: Eighty disc-shaped specimens of conventional PMMA and 3D-printed resin were prepared and divided into four subgroups based on cleaning methods. The specimens of the control group (group C) were immersed in distilled water, the second group (group T) was immersed in Corega tablet solution. The third group (group B) was subjected with liquid soap in a toothbrush simulator. The specimens in the fourth group (group BT) were brushed in the same way with liquid soap and immersed in Corega tablet solution. Surface roughness (Ra) was measured before and after cleaning, using a contact profilometer. Surface morphology was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Kolmogorov-Smirnov, repeated-measures ANOVA, and post-hoc tests were done to analyze the data (p