3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
PC-GF vs PVDF
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | Glass-fibre PC (PC-GF)PC | PVDFENGINEERING |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $71.27/kg median; $71.27–$71.27/kg across 1 dated product listings | $250.67/kg median; $250.67–$250.67/kg across 1 dated product listings |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | Polycarbonate reinforced with 30 wt% short glass fibre[1] | Polyvinylidene fluoride — a semi-crystalline fluoropolymer[2][3] |
| Densityg/cm³ | 1.17 (measured on a 100 % infill printed part, ISO 1183-A)[1] | 1.71 (ISO 1183) — the densest unfilled filament in the dataset[2] |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | 1 kg spools cluster near 71[4] | 1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 251[5] |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | 71 — BASF Ultrafuse PC GF30 at igo3d is the only priced listing found; Owens Corning sells XSTRAND GF30-PC in 500 g and 1 kg[4][1] | 251 at 3DXTech's 750 g pricing — the most expensive material in the whole dataset[5] |
| Market availability1–5 | Niche, a handful of specialist brands — neither Polymaker's nor 3DXTech's polycarbonate range contains a glass-fibre grade, but BASF Forward AM and Owens Corning both sell one through European retail[4][1][6][5] | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide[5][7] |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 and 2.85 mm at +/- 0.05 mm; 500 g and 1 kg net spools[1] | 1.75 and 2.85 mm; 750 g spools[5] |
| Typical applications | Functional prototyping for mechanical engineering, electronics and automotive[1] | Chemical-plant fittings, semiconductor handling and parts needing outstanding UV and chemical resistance[2] |
| Diameter tolerance± mm | +/- 0.05 (Owens Corning XSTRAND)[1] | Not documented |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Nozzle temperature°C | 280-330 (Owens Corning XSTRAND GF30-PC)[1] | Not documented |
| Bed temperature°C | 80-110 (Owens Corning XSTRAND GF30-PC)[1] | 70–110 (3DXTech FluorX)[2] |
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Enclosure required (passive) — as for unfilled PC[8][9] | Enclosure required (passive)[2] |
| Bed surface & adhesion aid | Perforated plate, DimaFix or Magigoo PC glue (Owens Corning)[1] | Not documented |
| Warping tendency1–5 | Not documented | High — enclosure needed for reliable large parts[2] |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Not documented | Expert / industrial hardware only[2][3] |
| Extruder requirement | Owens Corning specifies a nozzle above 0.4 mm and hardened steel nozzles and drive wheels[1] | Not documented |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Hardened steel required — Owens Corning states glass reinforcement shortens brass nozzle and drive-wheel life[1] | Brass fine indefinitely for unfilled grades[2] |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Highly abrasive — 30 wt% glass fibre[1] | Non-abrasive when unfilled[2] |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles; PC already absorbs water from the air and Prusa lists glass-filled composites as a higher clogging risk[10][11] | Low — 3DXTech lists no special nozzle concerns, no minimum layer height and states drying is not required[7] |
| Other hardware wear | Not documented | Hydrogen fluoride released on overheating is extremely corrosive and will attack hotend and enclosure metalwork as well as people[3] |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | Negligible (<0.1 % EMC) — Owens Corning measures below 0.1 % at 23 °C and 50 % RH (ISO 62)[1] | Negligible (<0.1 % EMC) — fluoropolymers are essentially non-hygroscopic[2] |
| Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH% | Below 0.1 at 23 °C and 50 % RH, and below 0.1 at saturation (ISO 62)[1] | Not documented |
| Effect of moisture on strength | No dry-versus-conditioned figures are published. Polymaker calls PC highly hygroscopic; absorbed water flashes to steam and shows as bubbling and poor layer adhesion[12][13] | Not applicable in practice — 3DXTech states drying is not required for PVDF, so there is no moisture-driven strength loss to measure[7] |
| Mechanical Properties | ||
| Tensile strength (XY)MPa | 65 at break (printed, ISO 527 at 1 mm/min)[1] | 51 at break (printed XY, ISO 527)[2] |
| Young's modulusMPa | 5400 (printed, ISO 527 at 1 mm/min)[1] | 2450 (printed XY, ISO 527)[2] |
| Elongation at break% | 2.5 at break (printed, ISO 527 at 1 mm/min)[1] | 25 at break (printed XY, ISO 527)[2] |
| Flexural strengthMPa | 113 at yield (printed, ISO 178 at 2 mm/min)[1] | 50 (printed XY, ISO 178)[2] |
| Flexural modulusMPa | 5500 (printed, ISO 178 at 2 mm/min)[1] | 1800 (printed XY, ISO 178)[2] |
| Other impact data | Not documented | Izod 133 J/m on extruded PVDF stock, converted from 2.49 ft-lb/in (ASTM D256)[14] |
| Brittleness1–5 | Brittle — snaps with little warning; 2.5 % elongation at break[1] | Tough — absorbs impact, yields before breaking[2] |
| Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell | Rockwell 70 (118) — the source does not name the scales and Shore D 79 on extruded unfilled PC stock (ASTM D785, D2240); no figure is published for a glass-fibre grade[15] | Rockwell M79 on extruded PVDF stock (ASTM D785)[14] |
| Creep resistance / sustained load1–5 | Excellent — holds load for years. Room-temperature tensile creep of moulded unfilled PC ran unbroken at 41 MPa until the test was stopped, and 30 wt% glass raises the tensile modulus from about 2.3 to 5.4 GPa[16][1] | Not documented |
| Elasticity / flexibility1–5 | Rigid[1] | Slightly flexible in thin sections[2] |
| Thermal Properties | ||
| HDT at 0.45 MPa°C | Not documented | 149 on extruded PVDF stock (ASTM D648 at 66 psi; converted from 300 °F)[14] |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa°C | 137 (printed, ISO 75 Method A at 1.8 MPa)[1] | 113 on extruded PVDF stock (ASTM D648 at 264 psi; converted from 235 °F)[14] |
| Glass transition (Tg)°C | 145 (DSC, ISO 11357)[1] | Not documented |
| Melting point / Vicat°C | 270 stated as melting point (ISO 11357) — unusual for an amorphous polymer, but this is the published figure[1] | 170 melting (ISO 11357)[2] |
| Continuous service temperature°C | Not documented | 149 long term and short term on extruded PVDF stock (converted from 300 °F)[14] |
| Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K | 26.2 in XY and 77.4 in Z (printed, ISO 11359-2) — a threefold anisotropy, and the lowest in-plane expansion of any polycarbonate here[1] | 127.8 (extruded PVDF stock, ASTM D696; source states 7.1e-5 in/in/°F) — the highest thermal expansion of any engineering polymer in this dataset[14] |
| Flammability / UL 94 | UL 94 V-0 verified (Owens Corning)[1] | UL 94 V-0 on extruded PVDF stock; Ensinger lists inherent flame resistance[14] |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| UV resistance1–5 | Good — years with some colour shift. Owens Corning lists UV resistance as a product benefit but publishes no exposure data[1] | Excellent — designed for permanent outdoor use; Ensinger lists good UV and weather resistance and high gamma radiation resistance for PVDF stock[2][14] |
| Chemical resistance | Not documented | Outstanding — resistant to most acids, solvents and oxidising agents, which is the reason to use it[2] |
| Water / humidity resistance in service1–5 | Excellent — essentially unaffected; below 0.1 % water at saturation (ISO 62)[1] | Excellent — essentially unaffected[2] |
| Electrical & ESD properties | Electrically insulating (Owens Corning)[1] | Not documented |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[17] | Very high — toxic decomposition products; local exhaust mandatory. Above 315 °C thermal decomposition yields hydrofluoric acid, hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide[3] |
| Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min | ≈4 × 10¹⁰ median — the highest ultrafine-particle rate of the nine filaments in the chamber study, above every ABS tested[17] | Not documented |
| Hazardous species emitted | Not documented | Above 315 °C: hydrofluoric acid, hydrogen cyanide, phenols, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and dense smoke. HF is extremely corrosive, its skin burns may not be immediately visible or painful, and exposure can be fatal by skin absorption, inhalation or ingestion[3] |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[17][9] | Local exhaust to outside / fume hood — the SDS states local exhaust is preferred[3] |
| Dust & fibre handling hazard | Owens Corning warns that the glass reinforcement is abrasive when melted and advises sufficient ventilation and avoiding extrusion fumes[1] | Molten polymer causes thermal burns and must not be pulled off the skin. If HF is detected during a decomposition event, cut the heat but keep the extraction running, ventilate, and clear non-essential people from the area[3] |
| Post-Processing | ||
| Dimensional accuracy & detail | High dimensional stability is the headline benefit; the 26.2 um/m*K in-plane CTE is a third of unfilled PC's[1] | The processing window sits well below the 315 °C decomposition threshold, so nozzle temperature must be controlled rather than raised to chase flow[2][3] |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | Dichloromethane and chloroform dissolve the matrix and leave the fibre; DMF and dioxane do the same (Covestro).[18] | THF, MEK, DMF, DMAc, NMP, DMSO and trimethyl phosphate dissolve 5–10 wt% at ambient — Arkema's active solvents, all lab reagents.[19] |
| Softened or crazed by | Methanol, butyl acetate, ether, 1 % NaOH and phthalate plasticisers stress-crack it; acetone, MEK and xylene swell it.[18] | Acetone, MIBK, cyclohexanone, butyl acetate and glycol ethers swell it; alkalis above pH 12 attack the homopolymer.[19][20] |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | Dichloromethane cement welds the resin, but the fibre keeps the joint from flowing closed. Controlled carcinogen.[21] | None for the workshop — the active solvents (NMP, DMAc, DMF) are laboratory reagents used for casting membranes, not joints.[19] |
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
- XSTRAND GF30-PC Data Sheet Owens Corning · 2019-04 · tds
- FluorX PVDF Technical Data Sheet v3 3DXTech · 2026-08 · tds
- FluorX PVDF Safety Data Sheet v1.1 3DXTech · 2026-08 · msds
- BASF Ultrafuse PC GF30 Black 2.85 mm 1.000 g igo3d · 2026-08 · vendor
- 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
- FluorX PVDF — product page 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- PolyLite PC Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
- ABS / ASA / PC Usage Guide Bambu Lab Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Composite materials filled with carbon, kevlar or glass Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
- Polycarbonate — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
- PC — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- TECAFLON PVDF natural — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- TECANAT natural (PC) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- Experimental data for creep and dynamic mechanical properties of polycarbonate and polycarbonate/ABS Data in Brief 42:108264 · 2022-06 · paper
- 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
- Makrolon — The chemical resistance (Makrolon 2800, 6 days at 23 °C and 50 °C) Covestro · 2016-12 · tds
- Kynar PVDF — Design properties: solubility and irradiation (active and latent solvents) Arkema · 2026-08 · tds
- Kynar PVDF resin — chemical and fuel resistance Arkema · 2026-08 · tds
- Weld-On 3 Acrylic Plastic Cement — technical data sheet (shipped as dichloromethane) IPS Corporation · 2002-07 · tds