Filament comparison

PA aramid vs PA-CF ESD

Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.

Aramid-fibre nylon guide ESD-safe CF nylon guide

First filamentSecond filament

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparison More PA aramid comparisons More PA-CF ESD comparisons

PA aramid vs PA-CF ESD — documented properties and sources
Property	Aramid-fibre nylonPA	ESD-safe CF nylonPA
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots	Not documented	$129.98/kg median; $129.98–$129.98/kg across 1 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistry	Aramid-fibre reinforced polyamide[1]	Carbon-filled polyamide compounded to a static-dissipative resistivity — Polymaker's grade uses a PA612 matrix[2]
Densityg/cm³	Not documented	1.10 (ISO 1183)[2]
Typical priceUSD/kg	Not documented	1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 130[3]
Price range across brandsUSD/kg	Not documented	130 at Polymaker's 0.5 kg pricing[3]
Market availability1–5	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]	Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide[3]
Spool sizes & diameters	Not documented	1.75 mm; 0.5 kg spools[3]
Typical applications	Not documented	Electronics jigs and trays that also need nylon toughness and heat resistance[2]
Printing Parameters
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5	Enclosure required (passive) — as for every nylon[1]	Enclosure required (passive)[1]
Bed surface & adhesion aid	Not documented	PEI sheet with a glue stick, or a dedicated adhesive such as Magigoo[5][1]
Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5	Not documented	Needs a specific surface plus adhesive[5]
Stringing / oozing tendency1–5	Not documented	Moderate — retraction tuning needed[1]
Overall printing difficulty1–5	Not documented	Expert / industrial hardware only[1][6]
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4	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]	Hardened steel required — Polymaker measures brass nozzle life at about 9 h on PA612-ESD and recommends hardened steel or ruby[2]
Abrasiveness1–5	Highly abrasive — fibre-reinforced nylon composite[7]	Highly abrasive — carbon-filled nylon composite; Polymaker puts brass nozzle life at roughly 9 h on PA612-ESD[2]
Nozzle clog risk1–5	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]	High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles[6]
Heat-creep / jam sensitivity1–5	Not documented	Moderate — good heatbreak cooling needed[5]
Hotend requirement	Not documented	May require an all-metal hot end (Simplify3D)[5]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5	Very high (>2 %) — the polyamide matrix governs uptake[6]	High (0.8–2 %) — the PA612 matrix sits between PA6 and PA12[9][10]
Effect of moisture on strength	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[11][10]	Polymaker publishes dry and wet printed blocks for PA612-ESD itself: at 4.64 % moisture tensile falls 84.3 → 73.6 MPa and modulus 4294 → 3731 MPa[2][10]
Storage requirement	Not documented	Sealed below 20 % RH with desiccant[6]
Hydrolysis at melt temperature	Not documented	Polymaker specifies an 80–100 °C dry and storage below 20 % RH; no molecular-weight loss figure is published, and the wet data it does publish is conditioning rather than melt hydrolysis[7][11]
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPa	Not documented	84.3 ± 2.3 printed XY dry (annealed 100 °C/16 h), 73.6 ± 2.3 conditioned to 4.64 % moisture, ISO 527[2]
Young's modulusMPa	Not documented	4293.7 ± 116.4 printed XY dry and 3730.8 ± 156.2 conditioned, ISO 527[2]
Elongation at break%	Not documented	3.0 ± 0.1 printed XY dry and 4.2 ± 0.4 conditioned, ISO 527[2]
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²	Not documented	5.9 ± 0.4 printed XY dry and 4.9 ± 0.3 conditioned, ISO 179 notched[2]
Other impact data	Not documented	Charpy unnotched 24.1 ± 2.4 printed XY and 4.5 ± 0.2 printed Z (ISO 179)[2]
Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa	Not documented	21.5 ± 2.7 printed Z dry — only a quarter of XY, the most anisotropic nylon composite here; 19.2 ± 1.6 conditioned[2]
Brittleness1–5	Not documented	Brittle — snaps with little warning; elongation 3.0 % in XY and 1.4 % in Z[2]
Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell	Not documented	Rockwell M88 / R117 on extruded PA66-GF30 stock (ASTM D785); no figure is published for a conductive carbon-filled nylon filament[12]
Creep resistance / sustained load1–5	Not documented	Good. Ensinger rates its PA66-CF30 compound for sustained static and dynamic load at 110 °C continuous service; the PA612 matrix here still takes up 4.64 % moisture at conditioning, which softens it[13][2]
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5	Not documented	Good. Ensinger states carbon-filled PA66 compounds have improved fatigue strength in tension, flexure and compression[13]
Elasticity / flexibility1–5	Not documented	Rigid[2]
Z strength as % of XY%	Not documented	26 (printed Z against XY tensile)[2]
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°C	Not documented	157.0 (ISO 75, 0.45 MPa)[2]
HDT at 1.8 MPa°C	Not documented	125.4 (ISO 75, 1.8 MPa)[2]
Glass transition (Tg)°C	Not documented	41.8 (DSC)[2]
Melting point / Vicat°C	Not documented	187.3 melting (DSC); Vicat 190.0 (ISO 306)[2]
Flammability / UL 94	Not documented	Flammable; no UL 94 rating published for the grades surveyed[7]
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5	Not documented	Months outdoors before embrittlement — unstabilised polyamide yellows under UV[1]
Chemical resistance	Not documented	Withstands oils, fuels and alkalis[1]
Food contact	Not documented	Not food-contact certified as filament[1]
Biodegradability / compostability	Not documented	Not biodegradable[1]
Recyclability	Not documented	Not accepted in household plastic collection[1]
Electrical & ESD properties	Not documented	Static-dissipative — the reason the grade exists; Polymaker's insulating nylon composites sit above 10¹² ohm by contrast[2][9]
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5	Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[14]	Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[14]
VOC emission rateµg/min	Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[14]	Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[14]
Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min	≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[14]	≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[14]
Hazardous species emitted	Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[14]	Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[14]
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5	Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[14]	Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[14]
Dust & fibre handling hazard	Not documented	Fibre is bound in the matrix; sanding dust should not be inhaled[7]
Post-Processing
Sanding & machining	Not documented	Sands poorly — gums rather than powders[5]
Gluing & solvent welding	Not documented	Cyanoacrylate; no common solvent welds polyamide[5]
Vapour / chemical smoothing	Not documented	No practical vapour smoothing[5]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble in	Formic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[15]	Formic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[15]
Softened or crazed by	Zinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[15]	Zinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[15]
Solvent welding & smoothing agent	None — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[15]	None — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[15]

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

PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
Fiberon PA612-ESD Technical Data Sheet V1.0 Polymaker · 2025-06 · tds
Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
Nylon — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
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
Fiberon PA612-CF15 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
TECAMID 66 GF30 black (PA66-GF30) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
TECACOMP PA66 CF30 black — injection-moulding compound Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
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
Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds