Publications by authors named "Evangelia Vouvoudi"

Thermochemical recycling of plastics in the presence of catalysts is often employed to facilitate the degradation of polymers. The choice of the catalyst is polymer-oriented, while its selection becomes more difficult in the case of polymeric blends. The present investigation studies the catalytic pyrolysis of polymers abundant in waste electric and electronic equipment (WEEE), including poly(acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene) (ABS), high-impact polystyrene (HIPS) and poly(bisphenol-A carbonate) (PC), along with their blends with polypropylene (PP) and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC).

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An industry listed as one of the largest globally is the cosmetic industry. In recent years, this industry has shown growing interest in the application of natural ingredients providing advanced properties to cosmetic creams such as moisturizing, antioxidant, sun-protecting and antimicrobial effects. In this context, the present study concerns the production of cosmetic emulsions containing oil obtained via the methods of extraction, hydro-distillation and maceration using sunflower oil as the carrier oil.

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Nanofillers in resin materials can improve their mechanical and physicochemical properties. The present work investigated the effects of zirconia nanoparticles (NPs) as fillers in commercial dental luting cements. Two dual-cured self-adhesive composites and one resin modified glass ionomer (RMGI) luting cement were employed.

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Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of thermal energy induced by a diode laser (445 nm) on the setting reactions of conventional glass ionomer cements (GICs) by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and to compare it with that induced by a LED device.

Methods: Four GICs were investigated in this study (GlassIonomer FX Ultra, Ketac Universal Aplicap, Equia Fill, and Riva Self Cure). The experimental groups of the study were as follows (n = 5): Group 1 (control) - the specimens after mixing were left to set without any treatment; Group 2 - the specimens were irradiated for 60 s using a LED (Valo™) at 1400 mW/cm (fluence ∼ 1.

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A review article has been conducted including the main research results and comments referring to flowable dental polymeric materials. To begin with, the synthesis and composition of this category of composites is discussed, revealing the major components of the commercial products in terms of chemistry and proportion. Later, the polymerization characteristics are unfolded regarding the reaction time and rate, volumetric shrinkage and depth of cure for both photocurable and self-curable composites.

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The new trend in food packaging films is to use biodegradable or bio-based polymers, such as poly(lactic acid), PLA with additives such as thymol, carvacrol, limonene or cinnamaldehyde coming from natural resources (i.e., thyme, oregano, citrus fruits and cinnamon) in order to extent foodstuff shelf-life and improve consumers' safety.

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Interim restorations are essential in fixed prosthodontics as they provide temporary protection of teeth before the insertion of the permanent restoration. Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) is widely used in the fabrication of interim-fixed restorations as it is a biocompatible material with a lot of convenient properties. However, it exhibits low impact and tensile strength and therefore it is necessary to be reinforced.

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Objective: This work presents the results obtained from the study of sorption/desorption process of some food/oral simulating liquids (FSLs) by the new marketed dental light-cured nanohybrid composite Kalore GC.

Methods: The sorption/desorption process followed is recommended by ISO 4049:2009. The samples were immersed in various liquids proposed by ADA as FSLs, such as H2O, artificial saliva, EtOH, EtOH/H2O solution (75vol%) or C7H16, while the mass change for totally 30 days was recorded on defined time intervals.

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Objective: The aim of this work is the study of the dynamic mechanical thermal properties (viscoelastic properties) of a current dental commercial light-cured nanohybrid resin composite, Kalore, GC (GC Corporation, Tokyo, Japan) along with the study of the effect of some food/oral simulating liquids (FSLs) on these properties.

Methods: Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) tests were performed on a Diamond Dynamic Mechanical Thermal Analyzer in bending mode. A frequency of 1Hz and a temperature range of 25-185°C were applied, while the heating rate of 2°C/min was selected to cover mouth temperature and the material's likely Tg.

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Objective: The purpose of this work was the study of the effect of food/oral simulating liquids on the dynamic mechanical thermal properties (viscoelastic properties) of current commercial dental light-cured resin composites characterized as nanohybrids. These nanohybrids were Grandio, Protofill-nano and Tetric EvoCeram.

Methods: The properties were determined under dry conditions (1h at 37°C after light-curing) and also after storage in dry air, distilled water, artificial saliva SAGF(®) or ethanol/water solution (75 vol%) at 37°C for up 1, 7, 30 or 90 days.

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This work is aimed at the study by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) of viscoelastic properties that is, the elastic modulus (E'), the loss modulus (E″), the loss tangent (tanδ) and the glass transition temperature (T(g)), of two current commercial light-cured resin composites, Filtek Supreme Body and Filtek Supreme Translucent, characterized as nanofilled. These composites show differences in the filler content and type. For DMA analysis the bar-shaped specimens were divided into groups of three samples each.

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Objectives: The purpose of this work was the detailed study of sorption characteristics of water or artificial saliva, the determination of flexural strength and the flexural modulus, and the study of the thermal stability of some current commercial dental light-cured nanocomposites containing nano-sized filler particles.

Methods: Three nanohydrid dental composites (Tetric EvoCeram (TEC), Grandio (GR) and Protofill-nano (PR)) and two nanofill composites (Filtek Supreme Body (FSB) and the Filtek Supreme Translucent (FST)) were used in this work. The volumetric shrinkage due to polymerization was first determined.

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