Machinability of poly(methyl methacrylate) infiltrated zirconia hybrid composites

A new poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) infiltrated zirconia hybrid composite (PZC) has been demonstrated to exhibit improved fracture toughness; however, its machinability remains unknown. The objective of this research is to characterize and correlate the machinability of PZC with its microstructure and mechanical properties. The results suggest that the composite exhibits an excellent machinability that is similar to that of resin composite and better than that of glasses and ceramics. This PZC hybrid composite may enable new opportunities for the use of PZC with the dental CAD/CAM technique.