3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
PA11 vs PSU
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | PA11 (Nylon 11)PA | PSUHIGHTEMP |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $194.98/kg median; $194.98–$194.98/kg across 1 dated product listings | $168.00/kg median; $168.00–$168.00/kg across 1 dated product listings |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | Polyamide 11, polymerised from castor-oil-derived aminoundecanoic acid — a bio-based nylon[1][2] | Polysulfone — the lowest-temperature and cheapest of the sulfone family[3] |
| Densityg/cm³ | 1.02 (ISO 1183)[1] | 1.24 (ISO 1183)[3] |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | Not documented | 1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 250[4] |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | Not documented | 168-250 across formats; 250 g spool $42 (168/kg), 500 g $125 (250/kg) — 3DXTech is the only filament supplier found[4] |
| Market availability1–5 | Niche, a handful of specialist brands[2] | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide[4] |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 mm; 1 kg spools[2] | 1.75 mm; 250 g and 500 g spools[4] |
| Typical applications | Tough, chemically resistant functional parts; Prusa targets it at impact-loaded and vibration-loaded components[2] | Transparent high-temperature housings, medical trays and hot-water fittings[3] |
| Diameter tolerance± mm | ±0.02 (Prusament)[1] | Not documented |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Nozzle temperature°C | 275 ± 10 (Prusament)[1] | Not documented |
| Bed temperature°C | 100 ± 10 (Prusament)[1] | 120–140 (3DXTech)[3] |
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Enclosure required (passive) — Prusament specifies a 55 ± 5 °C chamber[1] | Actively heated chamber required[5][6] |
| Recommended chamber temperature°C | 55 ± 5 (Prusament)[1] | Not documented |
| Bed surface & adhesion aid | PA nylon sheet (Prusament)[1] | Not documented |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning[1][7] | Expert / industrial hardware only[5][6] |
| Extruder requirement | Prusa printed its test specimens with a high-flow CHT nozzle[1] | Not documented |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Brass fine indefinitely for unfilled grades[7] | Brass fine indefinitely for unfilled grades, but brass softens near these nozzle temperatures — hardened or plated hot ends are the norm[5] |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Non-abrasive when unfilled[7] | Non-abrasive when unfilled[3] |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles[8] | Moderate — needs dry filament and a clean nozzle; 3DXTech lists no special nozzle concerns but a mandatory 120 °C pre-dry before every print[9] |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | High (0.8–2 %) — Prusa measures 0.46 % after 7 days at 22 % RH, but PA11 sits between PA12 and PA6 in the family[1][8] | Not documented |
| Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH% | 0.26 after 24 h and 0.46 after 7 days (Prusa Polymers method)[1] | 0.30 in 24 h on extruded stock (ASTM D570)[10] |
| Symptoms when wet | Popping and cracking during extrusion, then hard-to-diagnose defects[11] | Not documented |
| Effect of moisture on strength | Prusa publishes no dry-versus-conditioned columns; the CoPA reference shows the PA-family response — stiffness and strength fall sharply, impact and elongation rise[11][12] | No dry-versus-conditioned figures are published; 3DXTech mandates a 120 °C, 4 h pre-dry before every print because trapped water flashes to steam at these nozzle temperatures[9] |
| Storage requirement | Sealed below 20 % RH with desiccant[8] | Not documented |
| Mechanical Properties | ||
| Tensile strength (XY)MPa | 38.3 ± 0.8 printed horizontal and 39.5 ± 0.5 printed vertical at yield, ISO 527-1[1] | 52 (printed XY, ISO 527, 3DXTech); 81 at break on extruded stock (ASTM D638)[3][10] |
| Young's modulusMPa | 1200 printed, both orientations, ISO 527-1[1] | 2100 (printed XY, ISO 527)[3] |
| Elongation at break% | 5.6 ± 0.1 at yield, printed, ISO 527-1[1] | 8 (printed XY, ISO 527) against 50 on extruded stock — nearly three times PPSU's printed 3 %[3][13][10] |
| Flexural strengthMPa | Not documented | 87 (printed XY, ISO 178)[3] |
| Flexural modulusMPa | 1100 printed horizontal and 1000 printed vertical, ISO 178[1] | 2050 (printed XY, ISO 178)[3] |
| Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m² | 12.9 ± 2.1 printed horizontal and 11.7 ± 1.2 printed vertical, ISO 179-1 notched[1] | Not documented |
| Other impact data | Not documented | Izod notched 69 J/m on extruded PSU stock, converted from 1.3 ft-lb/in (ASTM D256)[10] |
| Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa | 32 ± 1 (Prusa Polymers interlayer adhesion test) — the highest interlayer figure Prusa publishes for any of its filaments[1] | Not documented |
| Brittleness1–5 | Tough — absorbs impact, yields before breaking[1] | Moderate[3] |
| Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell | 70 Shore D (Prusa Polymers method)[1] | Rockwell M120 on extruded PSU stock (ASTM D785)[10] |
| Creep resistance / sustained load1–5 | Not documented | Good. Ensinger lists high creep resistance as a headline property of extruded PSU stock, which is rated to 173 °C heat deflection at 1.8 MPa[10] |
| Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5 | Excellent — living hinges viable[7] | Not documented |
| Elasticity / flexibility1–5 | Semi-flexible[1] | Rigid[3] |
| Z strength as % of XY% | 84 — Prusa publishes a tensile anisotropy coefficient of 0.84, the ratio of Z to XY tensile strength[1] | Not documented |
| Thermal Properties | ||
| HDT at 0.45 MPa°C | 58.7 (ISO 75, 0.45 MPa)[1] | 172 (printed XY, ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa, 3DXTech); 181 on extruded stock, converted from 358 °F at 66 psi[3][10] |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa°C | 49.9 (ISO 75, 1.8 MPa)[1] | 174 on extruded PSU stock, converted from 345 °F at 264 psi (ASTM D648)[10] |
| Glass transition (Tg)°C | Not documented | 187 (DSC, 3DXTech) and 185 on extruded stock (ASTM D3418), against 230 for PPSU[3][13][10] |
| Continuous service temperature°C | Not documented | 141 long-term service on extruded PSU stock, converted from 285 °F[10] |
| Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K | Not documented | 55.8 (extruded PSU stock, ASTM D696; source states 3.1e-5 in/in/°F)[10] |
| Flammability / UL 94 | Not documented | UL 94 V-0 on extruded PSU stock[10] |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| Water / humidity resistance in service1–5 | Absorbs water, properties shift[11] | Not documented |
| Biodegradability / compostability | Bio-based — the monomer comes from castor oil[2] | Not documented |
| Electrical & ESD properties | Not documented | Surface resistance above 10¹³ ohm/sq — an insulator (IEC 60093)[3] |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[14] | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised. None of these polymers was in the chamber study, and all are processed far above the temperatures it covered[14] |
| VOC emission rateµg/min | Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon; total VOC reached nearly 200 µg/min, the highest of the nine filaments tested[14] | Not documented |
| Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min | ≈2 × 10⁸ median — low for ultrafine particles despite the highest VOC mass of any filament tested[14] | Not documented |
| Hazardous species emitted | Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament — the largest single-VOC emission rate measured in the study[14] | Not documented |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[14] | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[14] |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | Dissolved at 23 °C by formic acid, phenol, m-cresol, 96 % sulphuric acid or hexafluoroisopropanol — all laboratory reagents.[15][16] | Chlorinated hydrocarbons — dichloromethane, chloroform — dissolve polysulfone; ketones and esters attack it as well.[17][16] |
| Softened or crazed by | Mineral acids, oxidants, halogens and zinc chloride solutions attack the amide bond; ordinary solvents do not (BASF, PA6/66).[15] | Acetone, MEK, ethyl acetate, benzene and toluene craze or stress-crack it; methanol and isopropanol only marginally.[16][17] |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | None — nylon's only solvents are formic acid, phenol and HFIP, all of which degrade the part they wet.[15] | Dichloromethane cement welds PSU and NMP softens residual resin. Both are laboratory reagents.[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
- Prusament PA11 Technical Datasheet v1.0 Prusa Polymers · 2026-07 · tds
- Prusament PA11 — material page Prusa Polymers · 2026-08 · doc
- ThermaX PSU Technical Data Sheet v3 3DXTech · 2026-08 · tds
- 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- Prusament PEI 1010 Technical Datasheet v1.0 Prusa Polymers · 2024-09 · tds
- Prusament PEI 1010 — material page Prusa Polymers · 2026-08 · doc
- PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- THERMAX PSU — product page (print recommendations) 3DXTech · 2026-08 · doc
- TECASON S natural (PSU) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · 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
- ThermaX PPSU Technical Data Sheet v3 3DXTech · 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 — resistance of Ensinger plastics to chemicals (DIN 50 014, 23/50) Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- Radel PPSU, Veradel PESU, Acudel modified PPSU Design Guide — environmental stress cracking tables Solvay Specialty Polymers · 2026-08 · tds