3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
BVOH vs PA aramid
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | BVOH (soluble support)SUPPORT | Aramid-fibre nylonPA |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $165.72/kg median; $165.72–$165.72/kg across 1 dated product listings | Not documented |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | Butenediol vinyl alcohol copolymer — a vinyl alcohol copolymer that dissolves faster and in cooler water than straight PVA[1] | Aramid-fibre reinforced polyamide[2] |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | 1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 166[1] | Not documented |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | 166 at Fiberlogy's 500 g pricing on 3DJake[1] | Not documented |
| Market availability1–5 | Niche, a handful of specialist brands[1] | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide — no aramid-filled nylon filament was found in any catalogue searched; the aramid filaments that do exist in the retail market use an ASA matrix[3][4] |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.5 kg spools[1] | Not documented |
| Typical applications | Dissolvable support where PVA dissolves too slowly, and for materials PVA bonds to poorly[1] | Not documented |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Open frame is fine[5] | Enclosure required (passive) — as for every nylon[2] |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Intermediate — dry filament and a tuned profile[6] | Not documented |
| Extruder requirement | A second extruder or a tool changer[5] | Not documented |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Brass fine indefinitely[5] | Hardened steel required — no aramid-filled nylon datasheet was obtainable; Polymaker measures about 9 h of brass nozzle life on its fibre-filled nylons[7] |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Non-abrasive[5] | Highly abrasive — fibre-reinforced nylon composite[7] |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | Very high — frequent jams without careful setup[6] | High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles; nylon already needs a drybox and Prusa names kevlar among the fibres that raise nozzle-clogging risk[8] |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | Very high (>2 %) — the vinyl alcohol backbone is what makes it soluble[6][5] | Very high (>2 %) — the polyamide matrix governs uptake[6] |
| Effect of moisture on strength | Not a structural material; no dry-versus-conditioned data is published[6] | Polymaker's printed dry-versus-wet blocks for its CoPA nylon show what conditioning does to the family: tensile 78.0 → 34.3 MPa and modulus 2703 → 724 MPa, with notched Charpy rising 6.9 → 27.7 kJ/m². Fibre reinforcement reduces but does not remove the effect[9][10] |
| Storage requirement | Sealed with desiccant at all times[6] | Not documented |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| Water / humidity resistance in service1–5 | Dissolves or disintegrates — by design[1] | Not documented |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission; none of these materials was in the chamber study[11] | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[11] |
| VOC emission rateµg/min | Not documented | Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[11] |
| Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min | Not documented | ≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[11] |
| Hazardous species emitted | Not documented | Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[11] |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Open a window / occasional ventilation[11] | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[11] |
| Post-Processing | ||
| Support material pairing | This is the support material[1] | Not documented |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | Water: about 1 g of BVOH per 20 g of water, several hours; warmer water is faster but must not be too hot.[12][1] | Formic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[13] |
| Softened or crazed by | Nothing else — a vinyl alcohol copolymer resists organic solvents, so IPA or acetone will not touch it.[14] | Zinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[13] |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | None — water is a removal solvent, not a welding one.[12] | None — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[13] |
Material entries describe families or representative grades, not an interchangeable specification for every spool. Test methods, orientations and conditions may differ. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.
Sources for this comparison
- Fiberlogy BVOH Natural — product page 3DJake International · 2026-08 · vendor
- PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
- 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- PolyDissolve S1 Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Fiberon PA6-CF20 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
- Composite materials filled with carbon, kevlar or glass Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
- PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
- Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Emissions of Ultrafine Particles and Volatile Organic Compounds from Commercially Available Desktop Three-Dimensional Printers with Multiple Filaments (Azimi et al.) Environmental Science & Technology 50(3) 1260-1268 · 2016-01 · paper
- Water soluble (BVOH/PVA) — Knowledge Base Prusa Research · 2026-08 · doc
- Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds
- Polyvinyl alcohol — KURARAY POVAL application guide Kuraray · 2026-08 · tds