3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

PA aramid vs PE

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

Aramid-fibre nylon guidePolyethylene (PE) guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore PA aramid comparisonsMore PE comparisons
PA aramid vs PE — documented properties and sources
PropertyAramid-fibre nylonPAPolyethylene (PE)POLYOLEFIN
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshotsNot documented$87.72/kg median; $87.72–$87.72/kg across 1 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryAramid-fibre reinforced polyamide[1]Polyethylene — the simplest polyolefin, non-polar and highly crystalline. The one retailed filament grade, Spectrum HDPE, uses what Spectrum calls Low Warp technology and is denser and stiffer than plain HDPE[2][3]
Densityg/cm³Not documented1.10 (Spectrum HDPE filament, ISO 1183) against 0.95 for extruded HDPE stock — the filament is a modified formulation[2][3]
Typical priceUSD/kgNot documented1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 88[4]
Price range across brandsUSD/kgNot documented87.72 — Spectrum's 500 g spools at 3DJAKE are the only PE filament listing found[4]
Market availability1–5Special 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[5][6]Niche, a handful of specialist brands — Spectrum HDPE in six colours is the only PE filament in the 3DJAKE and igo3d product sitemaps, at MatterHackers or at Printed Solid, but it is a normal stocked item rather than a special order[7][8][9][4]
Spool sizes & diametersNot documented1.75 mm; 500 g spools in six colours[4][7]
Typical applicationsNot documentedChemically resistant containers, packaging prototypes and consumer goods where HDPE is the production material[2]
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°CNot documented240-290 (Spectrum HDPE)[2]
Bed temperature°CNot documented80-100 (Spectrum HDPE)[2]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Enclosure required (passive) — as for every nylon[1]Enclosure recommended — Spectrum recommends a closed chamber for larger prints[2]
Part cooling fanNot documented0-50 % part cooling (Spectrum HDPE)[2]
Bed surface & adhesion aidNot documentedSpectrum states no adhesive is necessary for its low-warp HDPE, depending on geometry[2]
Warping tendency1–5Not documentedModerate — needs adhesion aid or draught shield. Spectrum's low-warp grade is sold as printable on desktop machines, which is not true of plain polyethylene[2]
Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5Not documentedNeeds the right surface or a thin adhesive; Spectrum states no adhesive is necessary but recommends a closed chamber for large parts[2]
Overall printing difficulty1–5Not documentedIntermediate — dry filament and a tuned profile; Spectrum sells the grade as desktop-printable with no dry box and no hardened nozzle[2]
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Hardened steel required — no aramid-filled nylon datasheet was obtainable; Polymaker measures about 9 h of brass nozzle life on its fibre-filled nylons[10]Brass fine indefinitely — Spectrum states a ruby or hardened nozzle is not required[2]
Abrasiveness1–5Highly abrasive — fibre-reinforced nylon composite[10]Non-abrasive[2]
Nozzle clog risk1–5High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles; nylon already needs a drybox and Prusa names kevlar among the fibres that raise nozzle-clogging risk[11]Low — Spectrum lists no drybox and no ruby or hardened nozzle for HDPE, and very low moisture absorption[2]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5Very high (>2 %) — the polyamide matrix governs uptake[12]Negligible (<0.1 % EMC) — Spectrum lists very low moisture absorption and no dry box[2]
Drying temperature & timeNot documentedNo drying step published; Spectrum lists a dry box as not required[2]
Effect of moisture on strengthPolymaker'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[13][14]Not applicable in practice — Spectrum lists very low moisture absorption and no drybox requirement for HDPE[2]
Storage requirementNot documentedStore dry at 18-25 °C out of sunlight; Spectrum quotes a 24-month shelf life[2]
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPaNot documented29 at break (Spectrum HDPE, ISO 527; specimen type not stated) against 25.5 at yield on extruded HDPE stock (ASTM D638, from 3700 psi)[2][3]
Young's modulusMPaNot documented3500 (Spectrum HDPE, ISO 527) against 965 on extruded HDPE stock (ASTM D638, from 140,000 psi) — the filament grade is nearly four times stiffer than plain polyethylene[2][3]
Elongation at break%Not documented18 at break (Spectrum HDPE, ISO 527) against above 100 on extruded stock (ASTM D638)[2][3]
Flexural strengthMPaNot documented27.6 on extruded HDPE stock (ASTM D790; converted from 4000 psi)[3]
Flexural modulusMPaNot documented3200 (Spectrum HDPE, ISO 178) against 965 on extruded stock (ASTM D790, from 140,000 psi)[2][3]
Other impact dataNot documentedCharpy 10 kJ/m2 (Spectrum HDPE, ISO 179-1; notch condition not stated); Izod 104 J/m on extruded stock, converted from 1.94 ft-lb/in (ASTM D256)[2][3]
Brittleness1–5Not documentedTough — absorbs impact, yields before breaking; 18 % elongation at break on the filament and above 100 % on extruded stock[2][3]
Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / RockwellNot documentedShore D 67 and Rockwell R54 on extruded HDPE stock (ASTM D2240, D785); Spectrum quotes Rockwell 80 HRM for its filament (ISO 2039-2)[3][2]
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5Not documentedGood — Spectrum lists outstanding abrasion and crack resistance for its HDPE, but no repeated-flex or fatigue test data was found for any PE filament[2]
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Not documentedSlightly flexible in thin sections — Spectrum's low-warp grade has a 3.5 GPa tensile modulus; plain extruded HDPE at 965 MPa is genuinely semi-flexible[2][3]
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°CNot documented75 on extruded HDPE stock (ASTM D648 at 66 psi; converted from 167 °F)[3]
Continuous service temperature°CNot documented110 stated as heat resistance by Spectrum with no test standard given; extruded stock is rated 120 long-term maximum (converted from 248 °F) and brittle below -76[2][3]
Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·KNot documented117 (extruded HDPE stock, ASTM D696; source states 6.5e-5 in/in/°F)[3]
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5Not documentedModerate — a season or two. Spectrum describes its HDPE as UV-stable and weather-resistant but publishes no exposure data[2]
Chemical resistanceNot documentedExcellent chemical resistance to acids, bases, oils and solvents (Spectrum); Ensinger lists broad chemical compatibility for HDPE stock[2][3]
Water / humidity resistance in service1–5Not documentedExcellent — essentially unaffected; Ensinger lists low moisture absorption for HDPE stock and Spectrum very low absorption for the filament[2][3]
RecyclabilityNot documentedSpectrum states the filament is fully recyclable; HDPE is resin code 2[2]
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[15]Not documented
VOC emission rateµg/minUp to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[15]Not documented
Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[15]Not documented
Hazardous species emittedCaprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[15]Not documented
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[15]Not documented
Post-Processing
Sanding & machiningNot documentedEasy to machine — Ensinger lists machinability as a headline property of HDPE stock[3]
Dimensional accuracy & detailNot documentedSpectrum lists a shiny surface finish and no adhesive requirement; shrinkage remains the limit on large flat parts[2]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inFormic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[16]None at room temperature; xylene dissolves HDPE at about 105 °C and LDPE at 75 °C. Hot decalin does the same.[17][18]
Softened or crazed byZinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[16]Toluene, xylene, styrene, chloroform, dichloromethane, MEK and trichloroethylene are all unsatisfactory at 21 °C.[18]
Solvent welding & smoothing agentNone — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[16]None — polyethylene has no room-temperature solvent, so joints are made by heat welding.[18][17]

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

  1. PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  2. Spectrum HDPE Technical Data Sheet Spectrum Filaments · 2025-10 · tds
  3. TECAFINE HDPE natural — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  4. Spectrum HDPE Traffic Black, 1.75 mm / 500 g 3DJAKE · 2026-08 · vendor
  5. Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. 3DJAKE product catalogue 3DJAKE · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. igo3d product sitemap (17452 product URLs) igo3d · 2026-08 · vendor
  9. Printed Solid product catalogue Printed Solid · 2026-08 · vendor
  10. Fiberon PA6-CF20 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
  11. Composite materials filled with carbon, kevlar or glass Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  12. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  13. PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  14. Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  15. 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
  16. Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds
  17. US 5,278,282 Polymer recycling by selective dissolution — xylene dissolution temperatures Nauman & Lynch, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute · 1994-01 · paper
  18. HDPE Chemical Resistance Guide (21 °C and 60 °C) INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA · 2026-08 · tds