3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

PA6/66 vs PLA-PHA

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

PA66 (Nylon 66) guidePLA/PHA blend guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore PA6/66 comparisonsMore PLA-PHA comparisons
PA6/66 vs PLA-PHA — documented properties and sources
PropertyPA66 (Nylon 66)PAPLA/PHA blendPLA
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshotsNot documented$76.40/kg median; $76.40–$76.40/kg across 1 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryPolyamide 66, condensed from hexamethylenediamine and adipic acid; melts around 40 °C above PA6[1]PLA blended with polyhydroxyalkanoate, a bacterially fermented bio-polyester[2]
Densityg/cm³1.14 (extruded unfilled PA66 stock)[3]1.2 (ISO 1183)[2]
Market availability1–5Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide — no unfilled PA66 filament appeared in any catalogue searched, and the 3DXTech nylon range offers PA6, PA12 and a 6/66 copolymer but no straight PA66[4][5]Niche, a handful of specialist brands[2][6]
Spool sizes & diametersNot documented1.75 and 2.85 mm; 750 g and 2200 g spools[2]
Typical applicationsNot documentedGeneral-purpose printing where PLA's brittleness is the limiting factor[2]
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°CNot documented195–220 (colorFabb)[2]
Bed temperature°CNot documented50–60 (colorFabb)[2]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Enclosure required (passive)[1]Open frame is fine[2]
Part cooling fanNot documented0–100 %; colorFabb states the blend runs on both heated and unheated beds[2][7]
Maximum volumetric flow (mm³/s; see test conditions)mm³/sNot documented3.2–8 at colorFabb's 40–100 mm/s, on a 0.4 mm nozzle at 0.2 mm layer[7][8]
Overall printing difficulty1–5Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning[1]Beginner — prints on any machine out of the box[2]
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Not documentedBrass fine indefinitely[2]
Abrasiveness1–5Not documentedNon-abrasive[2]
Nozzle clog risk1–5Very high — frequent jams without careful setup[9][10]Very low — unfilled PLA blend; Prusa lists no drybox and no hardened nozzle for PLA[11]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5Very high (>2 %)[10]Moderate — the PLA matrix takes up 0.40–0.51 % saturated; colorFabb publishes no figure for the blend[12][13]
Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH%8.5 at saturation on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D570) — the highest uptake of any polymer in this dataset[3]Not documented
Effect of moisture on strengthMeasured dry against wet on printed specimens at 6.16 % moisture (Polymaker CoPA): tensile 78.0 → 34.3 MPa, Young's modulus 2703 → 724 MPa, flexural strength 109.8 → 22.6 MPa, while notched Charpy rises 6.9 → 27.7 kJ/m² and elongation 12.7 → 13.2 %[14][9]Polymaker rates PLA low-sensitivity and publishes no dry-versus-conditioned figures for this grade; absorbed water flashes to steam and shows as bubbling and poor layer adhesion[10]
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPa82.7 at yield and 84.8 at break on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D638; converted from 12,000 and 12,300 psi) — no printed figure exists because no unfilled PA66 filament was found[3]62–64 (ISO 527-1A, colorFabb; two grades quoted)[2]
Young's modulusMPa2413 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D638; converted from 350,000 psi)[3]2960–3070 (ISO 527-1A, colorFabb)[2]
Elongation at break%50 at break on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D638)[3]4 and 11 (ISO 527-1A, colorFabb; two grades quoted)[2]
Flexural strengthMPa113.8 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D790; converted from 16,500 psi)[3]Not documented
Flexural modulusMPa3034 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D790; converted from 440,000 psi)[3]2500–3300 flexural modulus (ISO 178, colorFabb)[2]
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²Not documented2.8–3.7 (ISO 179, notched, colorFabb)[2]
Other impact dataIzod 53 J/m on extruded PA66 stock, converted from 1.0 ft-lb/in (ASTM D256)[3]Not documented
Brittleness1–5Not documentedModerate — colorFabb positions the blend as tougher and less brittle than its generic PLA grades[2]
Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / RockwellShore D 86 and Rockwell 85 (108) — the source does not name the scales on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D2240, D785)[3]Not documented
Creep resistance / sustained load1–5Not documentedPoor — no PLA/PHA creep test; plain printed PLA sagged from 12 to 16.2–21.8 mm over 5 days at 1.25 kg[15][16][17]
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5Excellent — living hinges viable[1]Below average — no S-N curve for the blend; colorFabb positions it as tougher and less brittle than its generic PLA, which ran 38 000–49 000 cycles at 30 % of tensile strength[18][2]
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Semi-flexible[9]Rigid[2]
Wear resistance & frictionWear factor 200e-10 in3*min/(ft*lb*h) on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D3702); Ensinger lists very good slide and wear properties[3]Not documented
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°C232 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D648 at 66 psi; converted from 450 °F)[3]Not documented
HDT at 1.8 MPa°C90 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D648 at 264 psi; converted from 194 °F) — the gap to the 0.45 MPa figure is the widest in the dataset[3]Not documented
Melting point / Vicat°C255 melting on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D2133; converted from 491 °F)[3]Above 155 melting (ISO 3146-C)[2]
Continuous service temperature°C85 long term and 149 short term on extruded PA66 stock (converted from 185 °F and 300 °F)[3]Not documented
Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K81.0 (extruded PA66 stock, ASTM D696; source states 4.5e-5 in/in/°F)[3]Not documented
Flammability / UL 94UL 94 V-2 on extruded PA66 stock[3]Not documented
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5Not documentedDegrades within weeks outdoors[19]
Biodegradability / compostabilityNot documentedcolorFabb states the PHA component is 100 % biodegradable[2]
Electrical & ESD propertiesVolume resistance 1e15 ohm-cm and dielectric constant 4 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D257, D150)[3]Not documented
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[20]Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission[20]
VOC emission rateµg/minUp to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon; total VOC reached nearly 200 µg/min, the highest of the nine filaments tested[20]Not documented
Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min≈2 × 10⁸ median — low for ultrafine particles despite the highest VOC mass of any filament tested[20]Not documented
Hazardous species emittedCaprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament — the largest single-VOC emission rate measured in the study[20]Not documented
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[20]None needed in a normal room[20]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inDissolved at 23 °C by formic acid above ~80 %, phenol, m-cresol, 96 % sulphuric acid or hexafluoroisopropanol — laboratory reagents.[21]Chloroform dissolves the PLA phase (10 % w/v, 2–4 h at 23 °C); THF and DMF need 65 °C. Laboratory reagents.[22]
Softened or crazed byZinc chloride solutions stress-crack it — 10 % marginal, 37 % not resistant; alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it.[21]Acetone, ethyl acetate and toluene plasticise it but dissolve <1 % even at 65 °C; submersion in acetone crazes and destroys parts.[22][23]
Solvent welding & smoothing agentNone — nylon's only solvents are formic acid, phenol and HFIP, all of which degrade the part they wet.[21]Chloroform vapour smooths and welds PLA at the cost of tensile strength; acetone does not smooth it at all.[24][23]

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. PLA/PHA technical data sheet colorFabb · 2026-08 · tds
  3. TECAMID 66 natural (PA66) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  4. 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
  5. Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. woodFill technical data sheet colorFabb · 2026-08 · tds
  7. glowFill technical data sheet colorFabb · 2026-08 · tds
  8. Max volumetric speed Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  9. Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  10. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  11. Filament Material Guide Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  12. Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet V3.0 — PLA Basic Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
  13. PolyLite PLA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  14. PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  15. BambuLab PLA Basic vs PLA Tough vs PLA-CF — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2026-08 · test
  16. Polymaker PLA Pro vs PLA-CF — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2026-08 · test
  17. Carbon Fiber PLA vs META-PLA vs PLA+ vs PLA by Sunlu — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2026-08 · test
  18. Mechanical Properties of Additively Manufactured Polymeric Materials — PLA and PETG — For Biomechanical Applications Polymers 16(13):1868 · 2024-06 · paper
  19. PLA — material guide Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  20. 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
  21. Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds
  22. Solubility Study of Ingeo Biopolymer Grades in Common Organic Solvents (NWPD003) NatureWorks · 2019-10 · tds
  23. Improve your 3D prints with chemical smoothing Prusa Research · 2026-08 · doc
  24. Effect of vapour smoothing in trichloromethane on 3D printed PLA — surface, mechanical and chemical structure Pitale, Keche & Chopra, Engineering Research Express 6(4) 045579 · 2024-12 · paper