The Effect of Resorcinol on Alginate Tear Strength

Balancing Antimicrobial Functionaly and Mechanical Integrity

Authors

  • Hasanain K.A. Alalwan Department of Prosthodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad.
  • Dhuha H. Mohammed Department of Prosthodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad.
  • Zainab A. Azeez Department of Prosthodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad.
  • Mustafa S. Tukmachi Department of Prosthodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad.
  • Aseel Mohammed Al-Khafaji College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad, Baghdad

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/d3000.2026.1356

Keywords:

Alginate, Impressio Material, Resorcinol, Tear Strength, Antimicrobial

Abstract

The development of dental impression materials with antimicrobial efficacy is a significant biomedical research target. Alginate impression material is widely used in dental practice, and endeavours to enhance its properties remain a persistent research objective. Incorporation of antimicrobial agents into alginate can compromise alginate's mechanical properties and increase the risks of tearing, thus harmonising between these contradictory effects seems an appealing aim to study. Benzene-1,3-diol known as resorcinol was utilized to create a potentially antimicrobial alginate impression material without reducing its tear strength below acceptable levels. This study was conducted to determine the least but effective antimicrobial concentration through incorporation of resorcinol into alginate using different concentrations. The disk diffusion test to evaluate the activity against different microorganisms (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans) was utilised. V-notched alginate-resorcinol samples (n=10) were fabricated from standard tear strength plastic mold and its riser with the following dimensions was used in this study ( 101.6mm, 19.5mm,2 mm, length, width and thickness, respectively) with a 90 degree v-notched region and tested using an Instron testing device with tensile action. The study showed that 2% and 2.5% resorcinol-alginate concentrations demonstrated antimicrobial activities against all the microbial species tested. Therefore, these concentrations were tested for tear strength and showed  a statistically significant reduction in tear strength (0.83 &0.79 N/mm, mean) for 2% & 2.5% concentrations, respectively, in comparison to the control group (0.94 N/mm), nevertheless, these results were very close to accepted tear strength range of the modern reinforced alginate (0.8-1.2 N/mm). The incorporation of resorcinol fortified the alginate impression material against multiple microbial species and preserved the tear strength as a representative of mechanical integrity within an optimum accepted specification level.

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Published

2026-06-04

Issue

Vol. 14 No. 1 (2026)

Section

Mechanisms of Oral Disease

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Hasanain K.A. Alalwan, Dhuha H. Mohammed, Zainab A. Azeez, Mustafa S. Tukmachi , Aseel Mohammed Al-Khafaji

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