Fiber-reinforced composites and method for the manufacture thereof

A curable fiber-reinforced composite for direct restoration, said composite comprising:

• (a) 10-60 wt-% of a monomer system comprising at least one curable monomer selected from dimethacrylates, acrylates, methacylates, epoxides, dimethacrylates of polyethyleneglycols, and light curable biodegradable resins;
• (b) 40-90 wt-% of a filler system comprising (i) at least one prepreg comprising highly viscous bundles of fibers, selected from the group consisting of fibers of bioactive glass, glass fibers, alumina fibers, zirconia fibers, metallic fibers, ceramic fibers, carbon/graphite fibers, polymeric fibers, self-reinforced polymer fibers, fibers based on polyphenols, degradable and biodegradable fibers, sol-gel derived silica fibers, and mixtures thereof, said fibers having fiber diameters of 0.05-100 μm and fiber lengths of 0.5-100 mm in a polymer matrix having a viscosity of at least 500 Pa·s, wherein the prepreg is in the form of pieces having a length of 3-20 mm, (ii) 0-80 wt-% of at least one particulate filler selected from conventional particulate fillers having a particle size of 0.1-100 μm and nanoscale particulate fillers having a particle size of less than 0.1 μm, and (iii) polymeric matrix;
• and
• (c) a polymerization initiator(s) and/or a polymerization accelerator(s),
• wherein said components (a), (b), and (c) are compounded together, thereby forming an application-orientated curable material which provides reduced polymerization shrinkage in direct composite restorations.