3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
PA-CF ESD vs PMMA
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | ESD-safe CF nylonPA | PMMA (acrylic)ENGINEERING |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $129.98/kg median; $129.98–$129.98/kg across 1 dated product listings | $49.99/kg median; $49.99–$49.99/kg across 1 dated product listings |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | Carbon-filled polyamide compounded to a static-dissipative resistivity — Polymaker's grade uses a PA612 matrix[1] | Poly(methyl methacrylate) — acrylic, sold for 3D printing as a transparent glass substitute[2] |
| Densityg/cm³ | 1.10 (ISO 1183)[1] | Not documented |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | 1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 130[3] | 1 kg spools cluster near 50[4] |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | 130 at Polymaker's 0.5 kg pricing[3] | 50 at Push Plastic's 1 kg listing; 3 kg spools run the same per kilogram[4] |
| Market availability1–5 | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide[3] | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide[4] |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 mm; 0.5 kg spools[3] | 1.75 and 2.85 mm; 1 and 3 kg spools[4] |
| Typical applications | Electronics jigs and trays that also need nylon toughness and heat resistance[1] | Transparent covers and light guides where PC's yellowing or cost rules it out[2] |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Enclosure required (passive)[5] | Not documented |
| Bed surface & adhesion aid | PEI sheet with a glue stick, or a dedicated adhesive such as Magigoo[6][5] | Not documented |
| Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5 | Needs a specific surface plus adhesive[6] | Not documented |
| Stringing / oozing tendency1–5 | Moderate — retraction tuning needed[5] | Not documented |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Expert / industrial hardware only[5][7] | Not documented |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Hardened steel required — Polymaker measures brass nozzle life at about 9 h on PA612-ESD and recommends hardened steel or ruby[1] | Not documented |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Highly abrasive — carbon-filled nylon composite; Polymaker puts brass nozzle life at roughly 9 h on PA612-ESD[1] | Not documented |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles[7] | Not documented |
| Heat-creep / jam sensitivity1–5 | Moderate — good heatbreak cooling needed[6] | Not documented |
| Hotend requirement | May require an all-metal hot end (Simplify3D)[6] | Not documented |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | High (0.8–2 %) — the PA612 matrix sits between PA6 and PA12[8][9] | Not documented |
| Effect of moisture on strength | 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[1][9] | Not documented |
| Storage requirement | Sealed below 20 % RH with desiccant[7] | Not documented |
| Hydrolysis at melt temperature | 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[10][11] | Not documented |
| Mechanical Properties | ||
| Tensile strength (XY)MPa | 84.3 ± 2.3 printed XY dry (annealed 100 °C/16 h), 73.6 ± 2.3 conditioned to 4.64 % moisture, ISO 527[1] | Not documented |
| Young's modulusMPa | 4293.7 ± 116.4 printed XY dry and 3730.8 ± 156.2 conditioned, ISO 527[1] | Not documented |
| Elongation at break% | 3.0 ± 0.1 printed XY dry and 4.2 ± 0.4 conditioned, ISO 527[1] | Not documented |
| Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m² | 5.9 ± 0.4 printed XY dry and 4.9 ± 0.3 conditioned, ISO 179 notched[1] | Not documented |
| Other impact data | Charpy unnotched 24.1 ± 2.4 printed XY and 4.5 ± 0.2 printed Z (ISO 179)[1] | Not documented |
| Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa | 21.5 ± 2.7 printed Z dry — only a quarter of XY, the most anisotropic nylon composite here; 19.2 ± 1.6 conditioned[1] | Not documented |
| Brittleness1–5 | Brittle — snaps with little warning; elongation 3.0 % in XY and 1.4 % in Z[1] | Not documented |
| Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell | Rockwell M88 / R117 on extruded PA66-GF30 stock (ASTM D785); no figure is published for a conductive carbon-filled nylon filament[12] | Not documented |
| Creep resistance / sustained load1–5 | 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][1] | Not documented |
| Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5 | Good. Ensinger states carbon-filled PA66 compounds have improved fatigue strength in tension, flexure and compression[13] | Not documented |
| Elasticity / flexibility1–5 | Rigid[1] | Not documented |
| Z strength as % of XY% | 26 (printed Z against XY tensile)[1] | Not documented |
| Thermal Properties | ||
| HDT at 0.45 MPa°C | 157.0 (ISO 75, 0.45 MPa)[1] | Not documented |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa°C | 125.4 (ISO 75, 1.8 MPa)[1] | Not documented |
| Glass transition (Tg)°C | 41.8 (DSC)[1] | Not documented |
| Melting point / Vicat°C | 187.3 melting (DSC); Vicat 190.0 (ISO 306)[1] | Not documented |
| Flammability / UL 94 | Flammable; no UL 94 rating published for the grades surveyed[10] | Not documented |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| UV resistance1–5 | Months outdoors before embrittlement — unstabilised polyamide yellows under UV[5] | Not documented |
| Chemical resistance | Withstands oils, fuels and alkalis[5] | Not documented |
| Food contact | Not food-contact certified as filament[5] | Not documented |
| Biodegradability / compostability | Not biodegradable[5] | Not documented |
| Recyclability | Not accepted in household plastic collection[5] | Not documented |
| Electrical & ESD properties | Static-dissipative — the reason the grade exists; Polymaker's insulating nylon composites sit above 10¹² ohm by contrast[1][8] | Not documented |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[14] | Not documented |
| VOC emission rateµg/min | Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[14] | Not documented |
| Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min | ≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[14] | Not documented |
| Hazardous species emitted | Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[14] | Not documented |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[14] | Not documented |
| Dust & fibre handling hazard | Fibre is bound in the matrix; sanding dust should not be inhaled[10] | Not documented |
| Post-Processing | ||
| Sanding & machining | Sands poorly — gums rather than powders[6] | Not documented |
| Gluing & solvent welding | Cyanoacrylate; no common solvent welds polyamide[6] | Not documented |
| Vapour / chemical smoothing | No practical vapour smoothing[6] | Not documented |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | Formic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[15] | Acetone, MEK, ethyl and butyl acetate, THF, chloroform and carbon tetrachloride dissolve it; the last two are laboratory reagents.[16] |
| Softened or crazed by | Zinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[15] | Alcohols, aliphatic hydrocarbons, oils and phthalate plasticisers craze it, and the threshold falls as stress rises.[16] |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | None — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[15] | Dichloromethane acrylic cement (IPS Weld-On 3): 2–5 min soak, 17.2 MPa lap shear at one week. Controlled carcinogen.[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
- Fiberon PA612-ESD Technical Data Sheet V1.0 Polymaker · 2025-06 · tds
- PMMA Filament 1.75mm 1kg — product page Push Plastic · 2026-08 · vendor
- Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
- Push Plastic product catalogue Push Plastic · 2026-08 · vendor
- PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Nylon — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 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
- Fiberon PA6-CF20 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
- 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
- Chemical resistance of PMMA products Mitsubishi Chemical (Acrypet) · 2026-08 · tds
- Weld-On 3 Acrylic Plastic Cement — technical data sheet (shipped as dichloromethane) IPS Corporation · 2002-07 · tds