3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
PA6-CF vs PPA
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | Carbon-fibre PA6 (PA6-CF)PA | PPA (polyphthalamide)PA |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $62.48/kg median; $39.00–$133.32/kg across 6 dated product listings | $45.49/kg median; $45.49–$45.49/kg across 1 dated product listings |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | PA6 reinforced with chopped carbon fibre — Polymaker's grade is 20 wt%[1][2] | Polyphthalamide — a semi-aromatic polyamide in which aromatic diacid units replace part of the aliphatic backbone; Raise3D and Bambu Lab both label it high-temperature nylon[3][4] |
| Densityg/cm³ | 1.09 (Bambu Lab), 1.17 (Polymaker Fiberon and 3DXTech), ISO 1183[2][1][5] | 1.21 (ISO 1183, Siraya Tech Fibreheart PPA)[6] |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | 1 kg-equivalent spools span 39–133; the middle of the market is about 80[2][7][8][9] | One 1 kg listing on the market, at 45[10] |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | 39–133 across brands; IEMAI 3D 39, Bambu Lab 43, YXPOLYER 45, Polymaker Fiberon 80, 3DXTech CarbonX 83, Obsidian 133[2][7][11][12][8][9] | 45 for the only unfilled PPA filament found — Siraya Tech Fibreheart PPA at 1 kg; every other PPA in retail is carbon- or glass-filled[10] |
| Market availability1–5 | Stocked by most mainstream brands[2][7][12][11][8][9] | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide — Siraya Tech is the only brand found selling unfilled PPA filament[10] |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.5, 0.75, 1 and 2 kg spools[7][12][2] | 1.75 mm, 1 kg[10] |
| Typical applications | Load-bearing brackets, tooling and drone frames that must hold strength above 150 °C[2][1] | Gears, bearings and tooling that must hold load above the reach of PA6 or PA12, and parts exposed to fuels and industrial chemicals[6] |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Nozzle temperature°C | 260–290 (Bambu Lab); 280–300 (Polymaker Fiberon)[2][1] | 280–300 (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Bed temperature°C | 40–50 (Polymaker Fiberon)[1] | 70–80 (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Enclosure required (passive) — Bambu Lab specifies a 45–60 °C chamber, Polymaker room temperature[2][1] | Enclosure recommended — Siraya Tech advises an enclosure to hold temperature and limit warping on larger prints[6] |
| Recommended chamber temperature°C | 45–60 (Bambu Lab); room temperature (Polymaker Fiberon)[2][1] | Not documented |
| Part cooling fan | Not documented | 20–60 % (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Bed surface & adhesion aid | Engineering or high-temperature plate with glue (Bambu Lab)[2] | PEI sheet with a glue stick, or a PVP glue coating[6] |
| Maximum volumetric flow (mm³/s; see test conditions)mm³/s | 8 at Bambu Lab's 100 mm/s cap on a 0.4 mm nozzle at 0.2 mm layer; Polymaker rates its grade to 300 mm/s[2][1][13] | Not documented |
| Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5 | Needs a specific surface plus adhesive[2] | Not documented |
| Stringing / oozing tendency1–5 | Moderate — retraction tuning needed[14] | Not documented |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Expert / industrial hardware only — enclosure, hardened nozzle, an 80 °C dry and a printer that can hold the filament dry throughout[2][1][15] | Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning; needs a 300 °C-class hot end and a dry spool[6] |
| Extruder requirement | 0.6 mm nozzle recommended by Bambu Lab; 0.4 and 0.8 also supported[2] | Not documented |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Hardened steel required — Polymaker measures brass nozzle life at about 9 h on PA6-CF20 and recommends hardened steel or ruby[1] | Brass fine indefinitely — Siraya Tech states a hardened steel nozzle is not needed for the unfilled grade[6] |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Highly abrasive — standard CF composite; Polymaker puts brass nozzle life at roughly 9 h[1] | Non-abrasive when unfilled[6] |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | Very high — frequent jams without careful setup; the combination of moisture and fibre is the worst case in the dataset[15][1] | Moderate — needs dry filament and a clean nozzle; Siraya Tech tells users to dry only when moisture symptoms appear, rather than before every print[6] |
| Heat-creep / jam sensitivity1–5 | Moderate — good heatbreak cooling needed[16] | Not documented |
| Hotend requirement | Hardened steel or ruby nozzle plus an all-metal hot end rated to 300 °C[1][2] | High-quality metal nozzle, 0.4–1.0 mm; hardened steel not required (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | Very high (>2 %) — 2.35 % saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH (Bambu Lab)[2] | High (0.8–2 %) — Siraya Tech publishes 2.59 % by ISO 62 immersion for the unfilled grade; on the equilibrium basis Bambu Lab uses, its 15 % carbon-filled PPA reaches 1.30 % against 2.35 % for the same maker's PA6-CF[6][4][17] |
| Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH% | 2.35 saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH (Bambu Lab)[2] | 2.59 by ISO 62 water immersion (Siraya Tech, unfilled) — an immersion figure, not the 25 °C / 55 % RH equilibrium basis the filled grades are quoted on, so the two are not directly comparable[6] |
| Drying temperature & time | 80 °C for 8–12 h (Bambu Lab); 100 °C for 10 h (Polymaker Fiberon)[2][1] | 80–100 °C for 4–6 h (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Symptoms when wet | Popping and cracking during extrusion, then hard-to-diagnose defects[18] | Oozing, bubbles and a rough surface finish (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Effect of moisture on strength | Polymaker publishes dry and wet printed blocks for PA6-CF20 itself: at 5.30 % moisture tensile falls 109.3 → 54.7 MPa and modulus 8636 → 2508 MPa, while notched Charpy rises 11.0 → 35.6 kJ/m². Fibre reinforcement reduces but does not remove the effect[1][18] | Siraya Tech publishes dry against saturated for the same grade: tensile 70 → 60 MPa, flexural 114 → 87 MPa, HDT at 1.8 MPa 73.5 → 48.5 °C, while Charpy rises 10 → 14.5 kJ/m²[6][10] |
| Storage requirement | Sealed below 20 % RH with desiccant; often needs to stay in a dryer while printing[15] | Dry box below 15 % RH (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| 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[1][19] | Not documented |
| Mechanical Properties | ||
| Tensile strength (XY)MPa | 102 ± 7 (Bambu Lab) and 109.3 ± 2.4 (Polymaker Fiberon, dry/annealed) printed XY, ISO 527; the Fiberon grade falls to 54.7 ± 1.1 conditioned to 5.30 % moisture; 3DXTech quotes 63 at break[2][1][5] | 72 at break (printed, ASTM D638, Siraya Tech); the product page quotes 70 dry and 60 saturated[6][10] |
| Young's modulusMPa | 4430 ± 310 (Bambu Lab) and 8636 ± 211 (Polymaker Fiberon, dry/annealed) printed XY, ISO 527; Fiberon falls to 2508 ± 83 conditioned; 3DXTech quotes 3800[2][1][5] | 3600 (printed, ASTM D638, Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Elongation at break% | 5.8 ± 1.6 printed XY, ISO 527 (Bambu Lab); 3DXTech quotes 3 at break[2][5] | 10.5 at break (printed, ASTM D638, Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Flexural strengthMPa | 161.0 ± 3.9 printed XY dry, 64.9 ± 4.9 conditioned, ISO 178 (Polymaker Fiberon); 3DXTech quotes 84[1][5] | 115 (printed, ISO 178, Siraya Tech); 114 dry against 87 saturated on the product page[6][10] |
| Flexural modulusMPa | 7038 ± 205 printed XY dry and 2286 ± 185 conditioned, ISO 178 (Polymaker Fiberon); 3DXTech quotes 3750[1][5] | 3350 (printed, ISO 178, Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m² | 11.0 ± 0.3 printed XY dry and 35.6 ± 1.2 conditioned, ISO 179 notched (Polymaker Fiberon)[1] | 10.1 Charpy (printed, ISO 179, Siraya Tech); the data sheet does not state whether the specimen was notched[6] |
| Other impact data | Charpy unnotched 24.0 ± 1.0 printed XY dry and 73.0 ± 2.0 conditioned, 7.5 ± 2.7 printed Z dry (Polymaker Fiberon); Bambu Lab 40.3 ± 2.5 unnotched, 13.4 ± 1.7 notched[1][2] | Not documented |
| Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa | 48 ± 6 (Bambu Lab) and 54.0 ± 5.2 (Polymaker Fiberon, dry) printed Z, ISO 527; Fiberon falls to 25.5 ± 1.2 conditioned[2][1] | Not documented |
| Brittleness1–5 | Moderate[2][1] | Moderate — 10.5 % elongation at break puts it between PA6 and the fibre-filled grades[6] |
| Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell | Rockwell M88 / R117 on extruded PA66-GF30 stock (ASTM D785); no figure is published for a carbon-fibre nylon filament[20] | Not documented |
| Creep resistance / sustained load1–5 | Good. Ensinger rates its PA66-CF30 injection-moulding compound for exceptional performance under both static and dynamic loading with 110 °C continuous service; in a printed part the fibre restrains the matrix, but conditioning to equilibrium moisture still softens it[21][18] | Good — Raise3D cites high creep resistance as a reason to choose the PPA matrix over other nylons[3] |
| Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5 | Good. Ensinger states its PA66-CF30 compound has improved fatigue strength in tension, flexure and compression against unfilled and glass-filled PA66[21] | Not documented |
| Elasticity / flexibility1–5 | Rigid[2] | Rigid — 3.6 GPa tensile modulus[6] |
| Z strength as % of XY% | 47 (Bambu Lab) to 49 (Polymaker Fiberon), printed[2][1] | Not documented |
| Wear resistance & friction | Not documented | Siraya Tech describes the unfilled grade as low-friction and self-lubricating, aimed at gears and bearings[6][10] |
| Thermal Properties | ||
| HDT at 0.45 MPa°C | 186 (Bambu Lab) and 215 (Polymaker Fiberon), ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa[2][1] | 81 dry and 61 saturated (printed, ISO 75 Method B at 0.45 MPa, Siraya Tech)[6] |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa°C | 164 (Bambu Lab) and 173 (Polymaker Fiberon), ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa[2][1] | 73.5 dry and 48.5 saturated (printed, ISO 75 Method A at 1.8 MPa, Siraya Tech) — unfilled PPA deflects near its Tg; the 190–227 °C figures quoted for PPA are carbon-filled grades[6][4] |
| Glass transition (Tg)°C | 68 (Bambu Lab) to 74.2 (Polymaker Fiberon), DSC; 3DXTech quotes 70[2][1][5] | 80 (ASTM D3418, Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Melting point / Vicat°C | 223 melting (Bambu Lab, DSC); Vicat 212 (ISO 306)[2] | 231 melting point (ASTM D3418) and 230 Vicat (ISO 306), Siraya Tech[6] |
| Continuous service temperature°C | Bounded by heat deflection of 164–173 °C at 1.8 MPa; no loaded-bar service figure is published[2][1] | Not documented |
| Annealing response | 100 °C for 16 h (Polymaker Fiberon)[1] | Siraya Tech's product page offers annealing for strength while its own data sheet says annealing is not recommended because the print can warp; on its 15 % carbon-filled PPA, annealing lifts HDT at 1.8 MPa from 82.5 to 119 °C[6][10][22] |
| Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K | 94 in the XY direction and 180 in Z, measured on XY-built specimens (79 and 148 on XZ/ZX-built specimens), room temperature to 60 °C, ASTM E831. From Stratasys FDM Nylon-CF10, a blended-nylon matrix with 10 wt% carbon fibre — the closest published printed CTE for a carbon-fibre nylon[23] | Not documented |
| Flammability / UL 94 | Flammable; no UL 94 rating published[1] | Not documented |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| UV resistance1–5 | Months outdoors before embrittlement — unstabilised polyamide yellows and chalks under UV[14] | Not documented |
| Chemical resistance | Withstands oils, fuels and alkalis[14] | Withstands fuels, oils and industrial chemicals; Bambu Lab rates semi-aromatic nylon better than general nylon against weak acids, weak alkalis and most organic solvents[6][4] |
| Water / humidity resistance in service1–5 | Absorbs water, properties shift[18] | Absorbs water, properties shift — a saturated specimen loses about 15 % of its tensile strength and 25 °C of heat-deflection temperature[6][10] |
| Food contact | Not food-contact certified[14] | Not documented |
| Biodegradability / compostability | Not biodegradable[14] | Not documented |
| Recyclability | Fibre-filled polyamide is not accepted in household plastic collection[14] | Not documented |
| Electrical & ESD properties | Surface resistance above 10⁹ ohm/sq — not static-dissipative (3DXTech, ASTM D257)[5] | Not documented |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[24] | Not documented |
| VOC emission rateµg/min | Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[24] | Not documented |
| Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min | ≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[24] | Not documented |
| Hazardous species emitted | Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[24] | Not documented |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[24] | Not documented |
| Dust & fibre handling hazard | Fibre is bound in the matrix; sanding dust should not be inhaled[1] | Not documented |
| Post-Processing | ||
| Sanding & machining | Sands to a matte finish; the fibre makes it cut more cleanly than unfilled nylon[16] | Not documented |
| Gluing & solvent welding | Cyanoacrylate; no common solvent welds polyamide[16] | Not documented |
| Vapour / chemical smoothing | No practical vapour smoothing[16] | Not documented |
| Support material pairing | PolyDissolve S1 (Polymaker Fiberon)[1] | Compatible with quick-release support materials (Siraya Tech)[6] |
| Dimensional accuracy & detail | Conditioned parts grow; Polymaker declines to publish a standard dimensional allowance because it depends on geometry and infill[18] | Not documented |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | Formic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[25] | Dissolved at 23 °C by formic acid, phenol, m-cresol, 96 % sulphuric acid or hexafluoroisopropanol — all laboratory reagents.[25] |
| Softened or crazed by | Zinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[25] | Mineral acids, oxidants, halogens and zinc chloride solutions attack the amide bond; ordinary solvents do not.[25] |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | None — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[25] | None — nylon's only solvents are formic acid, phenol and HFIP, all of which degrade the part they wet.[25] |
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 PA6-CF20 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
- Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet — PA6-CF Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
- Raise3D Industrial PPA CF Technical Data Sheet V2.0 Raise3D · 2022-04 · tds
- Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet V1.0 — PPA-CF Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
- CarbonX Carbon Fiber Nylon (Gen3) Technical Data Sheet v3.0 3DXTech · 2026-08 · tds
- Siraya Tech Fibreheart PPA Technical Data Sheet Siraya Tech · 2026-08 · tds
- Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
- YXPOLYER PA6 CF-Black 1 kg — product page YXPOLYER · 2026-08 · vendor
- IEMAI 3D CF-PA6 3D Printing Filament — store page IEMAI 3D · 2026-08 · vendor
- Siraya Tech Fibreheart PPA Filament — product page Siraya Tech · 2026-08 · vendor
- Printed Solid product catalogue Printed Solid · 2026-08 · vendor
- 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- Max volumetric speed Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
- PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Nylon — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet V3.0 — PA6-CF Bambu Lab · 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
- TECAMID 66 GF30 black (PA66-GF30) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- TECACOMP PA66 CF30 black — injection-moulding compound Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- Siraya Tech Fibreheart PPA-CF Technical Data Sheet Siraya Tech · 2026-08 · tds
- FDM Nylon-CF10 — Material Data Sheet (blended nylon, 10 wt% carbon fibre) Stratasys · 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