Shear Bond Strength and Finite Element Stress Analysis of Composite Repair Using Various Adhesive Strategies With and Without Silane Application

Abstract

This study evaluated the effect of various adhesive systems, particularly silane application, on the repair bond strength of a nanofill resin composite and associated stress distribution using finite element analysis (FEA). A total of 105 composite specimens (4 × 6 mm) were aged by thermal cycling (10,000 cycles), roughened, etched with phosphoric acid, and assigned to seven groups (n = 15): G1. control—no adhesive; G2. Single Bond Universal Adhesive; G3. composite primer; G4. PQ1; G5. Silane + PQ1; G6. Clearfil Universal Bond; G7. All-Bond Universal. Shear bond strength was measured using a universal testing machine (1 mm/min), and failure modes were microscopically classified. FEA was conducted under static and fatigue conditions using 3D models built in Fusion-360. Mechanical properties were obtained from technical data and the literature. A 300 N load was applied and contact detection (0.05 mm) and constraint zones were defined. Statistical analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD (p = 0.05). Pearson’s correlation was used to assess the relationship between bond strength and von Mises stress. The highest bond strength was found in G2 (21.54 MPa) while G1 showed the lowest (8.86 MPa). Silane-treated groups exhibited favorable stress distribution and a strong correlation between experimental and simulated outcomes. Silane applications significantly enhance composite repair performance.