3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

PA6/66 vs PP-CF

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

PA66 (Nylon 66) guideCarbon-fibre PP (PP-CF) guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore PA6/66 comparisonsMore PP-CF comparisons
PA6/66 vs PP-CF — documented properties and sources
PropertyPA66 (Nylon 66)PACarbon-fibre PP (PP-CF)POLYOLEFIN
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshotsNot documented$107.68/kg median; $57.13–$120.00/kg across 3 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryPolyamide 66, condensed from hexamethylenediamine and adipic acid; melts around 40 °C above PA6[1]Polypropylene reinforced with chopped carbon fibre[2][3]
Densityg/cm³1.14 (extruded unfilled PA66 stock)[4]0.91 (Prusament PP Carbon Fiber, ISO 1183)[2]
Typical priceUSD/kgNot documented1 kg-equivalent spools span 57–138; the middle of the market is about 108[5][6][7]
Price range across brandsUSD/kgNot documented57–138 across brands; Reli3D 57 at 700 g on Amazon, Prusament 108 direct from Prusa and 138 at Printed Solid, 3DXTech CarbonX PP+CF 120[5][8][6][7]
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[6][9]Available from several mainstream brands[6][8]
Spool sizes & diametersNot documented1.75 mm; 0.65 kg spools[8][6]
Typical applicationsNot documentedLightweight chemical-resistant parts, automotive clips and ducting that must survive above 150 °C[10]
Diameter tolerance± mmNot documented±0.04 (Prusament)[2]
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°CNot documented270 ± 10 (Prusament)[2]
Bed temperature°CNot documented85 ± 10 (Prusament)[2]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Enclosure required (passive)[1]Enclosure recommended — Simplify3D lists an enclosure as a hardware requirement and Polymaker advises one below 70 °C ambient to stop warping and cracking[11][12]
Part cooling fanNot documentedOff — Prusa runs 0 % except 100 % on bridges[2]
Maximum volumetric flow (mm³/s; see test conditions)mm³/sNot documented3.2 at Prusa's 40 mm/s cap on a 0.4 mm nozzle at 0.2 mm layer[2][13]
Warping tendency1–5Not documentedHigh — enclosure needed for reliable large parts; Prusa recommends a brim[2]
Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5Not documentedVery difficult — special plates or slurry required[2]
Overall printing difficulty1–5Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning[1]Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning; hardened nozzle mandatory[2]
Extruder requirementNot documentedPrusa states a hardened nozzle is necessary and recommends a brim[2]
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Not documentedHardened steel required — Prusa states plainly that a hardened nozzle is necessary[2]
Abrasiveness1–5Not documentedHighly abrasive — standard CF composite[2]
Nozzle clog risk1–5Very high — frequent jams without careful setup[14][15]Moderate — needs dry filament and a clean nozzle; 3DXTech specifies a hardened 0.4 mm minimum nozzle and 0.25 mm layers or higher, and Prusa lists composites as a higher clogging risk[3][16]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5Very high (>2 %)[15]Negligible (<0.1 % EMC) — Prusa measures 0.03 % in 24 h and 0.04 % in 7 days on its PP composite, the lowest figures it publishes for any filament[2]
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[4]0.03 after 24 h and 0.04 after 7 days at 24 °C / 22 % RH (Prusa Polymers)[2]
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 %[17][14]Not applicable in practice at 0.04 % equilibrium uptake[2]
Storage requirementNot documentedNo special storage needed[2]
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[4]21 ± 0.4 filament tensile yield (Prusament, ISO 527)[2]
Young's modulusMPa2413 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D638; converted from 350,000 psi)[4]Not documented
Elongation at break%50 at break on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D638)[4]Not documented
Flexural strengthMPa113.8 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D790; converted from 16,500 psi)[4]Not documented
Flexural modulusMPa3034 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D790; converted from 440,000 psi)[4]Not documented
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²Not documented14.5 ± 0.3 printed horizontal and 10.5 ± 0.8 printed vertical XZ (ISO 179-1, notched)[2]
Other impact dataIzod 53 J/m on extruded PA66 stock, converted from 1.0 ft-lb/in (ASTM D256)[4]Not documented
Brittleness1–5Not documentedTough — absorbs impact, yields before breaking[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)[4]Rockwell R102 (and M95) on extruded unfilled PP stock (ASTM D785); no figure is published for a carbon-fibre PP filament[18]
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5Excellent — living hinges viable[1]Good[19]
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Semi-flexible[14]Slightly flexible in thin sections[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[4]Not documented
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°C232 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D648 at 66 psi; converted from 450 °F)[4]158 (ISO 75, 0.45 MPa) — far above unfilled PP and above most engineering filaments[2]
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[4]115 (ISO 75, 1.8 MPa)[2]
Melting point / Vicat°C255 melting on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D2133; converted from 491 °F)[4]Not documented
Continuous service temperature°C85 long term and 149 short term on extruded PA66 stock (converted from 185 °F and 300 °F)[4]Not documented
Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K81.0 (extruded PA66 stock, ASTM D696; source states 4.5e-5 in/in/°F)[4]Not documented
Flammability / UL 94UL 94 V-2 on extruded PA66 stock[4]Not documented
Environment & Chemical
Chemical resistanceNot documentedExcellent against acids, alkalis and most solvents[12]
Water / humidity resistance in service1–5Not documentedExcellent — essentially unaffected[2]
Electrical & ESD propertiesVolume resistance 1e15 ohm-cm and dielectric constant 4 on extruded PA66 stock (ASTM D257, D150)[4]Not documented
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[20]Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission. Inferred: no polyolefin was among the nine filaments in the Azimi chamber study, so this is a family-level judgement rather than a measurement[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]Open a window / occasional ventilation. Inferred — no polyolefin was measured in the chamber study[20]
Dust & fibre handling hazardNot documentedCarbon fibre is bound in the matrix; sanding dust should not be inhaled[2]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inDissolved at 23 °C by formic acid above ~80 %, phenol, m-cresol, 96 % sulphuric acid or hexafluoroisopropanol — laboratory reagents.[21]None at room temperature; chloroform dissolves the matrix at 60 °C and xylene at about 118 °C, leaving the fibre.[22][23]
Softened or crazed byZinc chloride solutions stress-crack it — 10 % marginal, 37 % not resistant; alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it.[21]Xylene, decalin, CCl4 and chlorobenzene are heavily absorbed at 20 °C; oleum, chlorosulphonic acid and bromine destroy it.[22]
Solvent welding & smoothing agentNone — nylon's only solvents are formic acid, phenol and HFIP, all of which degrade the part they wet.[21]None — nothing softens PP at room temperature, so joints have to be welded thermally rather than chemically.[22]

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. Prusament PP Carbon Fiber Technical Datasheet v1.0 Prusa Polymers · 2024-11 · tds
  3. CarbonX PP+CF — product page 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
  4. TECAMID 66 natural (PA66) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  5. Prusament PP Carbon Fiber Black 650g — product page Prusa Research · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. Reli3D Carbon Fiber PP Filament 1.75 mm 700 g Black — Amazon listing Amazon.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. Printed Solid product catalogue Printed Solid · 2026-08 · vendor
  9. Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
  10. Prusament PP Carbon Fiber — material page Prusa Polymers · 2026-08 · doc
  11. Polypropylene — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
  12. PP — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  13. Max volumetric speed Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  14. Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  15. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  16. Composite materials filled with carbon, kevlar or glass Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  17. PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  18. TECAFINE PP natural — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  19. Centaur PP Technical Data Sheet Formfutura · 2026-08 · tds
  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. Pro-fax and Moplen polypropylene — Chemical Resistance Guide (20, 60 and 100 °C) LyondellBasell · 2026-08 · tds
  23. US 5,278,282 Polymer recycling by selective dissolution — xylene dissolution temperatures Nauman & Lynch, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute · 1994-01 · paper