Porosity of Heat Cured Acrylic After Adding Salvador Persica

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of incorporating Salvador Persica powder at different concentrations on the porosity of heat-cure acrylic resin. Materials and Methods: An in vitro experiment was conducted using heat-cure PMMA acrylic resin specimens fabricated through a conventional water-bath polymerization technique. Specimens were divided into three groups (n = 10): control group with no additive, group 2 (heat cure + 0.5% Salvador Persica), and group 3 (heat cure + 1% Salvador persica). The additive was incorporated using a weight replacement method while maintaining a standardize powder-liquid ratio. After polymerization specimens were put in a desiccation, specimens were weighed to obtain initial dry weight (Wd), followed by immersion in distilled water for 24 hours and reweighing obtain wet weight (Ws). Results: The control group administrated the lowest mean porosity value (0.281 ± 0.0202). Increase mean values were observed in both experimental groups (0.37 ± 0.32 for 0.5% and 0.36 ± 0.047 for 1%). No statically significant difference was found between the control and 0.5% groups (p = 0.391), whereas a high significant was observed between the control and 1% groups (p = 0.0007). No significant difference was detected between the 0.5% and 1% concentrations (p = 0.924). Conclusion: Incorporation of Salvadora persica powder influenced the porosity of heat-cure acrylic resin. Low concentration (0.5%) did not significantly affect porosity, while higher concentration (1%) significantly increased water sorption, suggesting increased internal porosity. Optimization of additive concentration is therefore essential to balance potential biological benefits with material performance.