Tribology for sustainable solutions: tribometer wear testings of the human dental care tribosystem tooth–bamboo toothbrush–toothpaste
Industrial Lubrication and Tribology
ISSN: 0036-8792
Article publication date: 18 April 2023
Issue publication date: 18 August 2023
Abstract
Purpose
Environmentally friendly products are finding a place in everyday lives more frequently, like bamboo toothbrushes. However, the authors find no statement from consumer protection centers about their impact on the human well-being or dental health in daily use. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the tribological parameters between tooth, toothpaste and toothbrush laboratory tests with a focus on abrasive wear.
Design/methodology/approach
The real-world system was systematically transferred to a laboratory scale, which was implemented to a Schwing-Reib-Verschleiß tribometer tribometer (Optimol Instruments). For an abstraction of the real-world system, as many components of the original tribosystem as possible were retained. In addition, the abstraction was selected so that the method could be transferred to other tribometers. For the evaluation of the test subjects, an optical measurement method was developed to investigate the forms of wear.
Findings
Based on eight test series, it is possible to differentiate between the tribological partners by the wear results. With the help of the measurement method, it will be possible to recommend the use of sustainable oral hygiene products for everyone in everyday life in future. According to the findings, the use of low-cost toothbrushes and highly abrasive toothpaste should be avoided. The effects of an aggressive brushing technique cannot be compensated by gentle toothbrushes and toothpastes.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first approach to investigate the wear behavior of tooth–toothpaste–toothbrush while substitute the tooth with dental gypsum. The approach is relevant for developing screening tests with high respect to transferability to the real-world application.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-11-2022-0339/
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Optimol Instruments Prüftechnik GmbH, Germany is thanked for the collaboration and the permission to use the required equipment and to publish the results. M. Reiser and P. Beau greatly acknowledge the support of M. Niessner and University of Applied Sciences Munich, Germany.
Funding: This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
Conflict of interest: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this manuscript related to the current study.
Citation
Reiser, M., Beau, P., Patzer, G. and Niessner, M. (2023), "Tribology for sustainable solutions: tribometer wear testings of the human dental care tribosystem tooth–bamboo toothbrush–toothpaste", Industrial Lubrication and Tribology, Vol. 75 No. 7, pp. 773-779. https://doi.org/10.1108/ILT-11-2022-0339
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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