Computational structural analysis of dental implants using radial point interpolation meshless methods

Over the years, several studies have shown that dental implants are the best solution to restore the natural dental dynamics. With the increasing demand for oral care, favourable times for its continuous evolution are approaching. Currently, numerical methods are essential computational techniques to respond effectively to problems encountered in the dental practice. The objective of this study was to understand the biomechanical behaviour of the implants and investigate how the nodal discretization of the model and the constituent material of the medical device influence the displacement and stress distribution. Therefore, this work used the Finite Element Method (FEM) and radial point interpolation meshless methods, namely the Radial Point Interpolation Method (RPIM) and the Natural Neural Radial Point Interpolation Method (NNRPIM), to accomplish these objectives. The solutions obtained with the three methodologies were compared. In the end, it was verified that the meshless methods have smoother and more precise variable fields.