3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
PVDF vs TPU-CF
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | PVDFENGINEERING | Carbon-fibre TPUFLEX |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $250.67/kg median; $250.67–$250.67/kg across 1 dated product listings | $107.05/kg median; $107.05–$107.05/kg across 1 dated product listings |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | Polyvinylidene fluoride — a semi-crystalline fluoropolymer[1][2] | Carbon-fibre reinforced thermoplastic polyurethane at the hard end of the range[3] |
| Densityg/cm³ | 1.71 (ISO 1183) — the densest unfilled filament in the dataset[1] | 1.22 (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 2781)[3] |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | 1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 251[4] | 107 for the only retail listing found (Extrudr 0.5 kg coil, incl. VAT)[5] |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | 251 at 3DXTech's 750 g pricing — the most expensive material in the whole dataset[4] | One listing only: EUR 49.56 incl. VAT per 0.5 kg coil, direct from Extrudr; no reseller or second brand found[5] |
| Market availability1–5 | Special order, 1–2 makers worldwide[4][6] | Niche, a handful of specialist brands — Extrudr's FLEX HARD CF is the only carbon-filled flexible with a published datasheet found here[3] |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 and 2.85 mm; 750 g spools[4] | 1.75 mm; 0.5 and 2 kg coils[5] |
| Typical applications | Chemical-plant fittings, semiconductor handling and parts needing outstanding UV and chemical resistance[1] | Stiffened flexible parts — damping mounts and semi-rigid brackets[3] |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Nozzle temperature°C | Not documented | 230–260 (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF)[3] |
| Bed temperature°C | 70–110 (3DXTech FluorX)[1] | 50–90 (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF)[3] |
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Enclosure required (passive)[1] | Open frame is fine[3] |
| Bed surface & adhesion aid | Not documented | PEI sheet or painter's tape; Polymaker warns TPU can over-stick and advises a glue stick as a release agent[7][8] |
| Maximum volumetric flow (mm³/s; see test conditions)mm³/s | Not documented | 1.6–8 at the 20–100 mm/s Extrudr specifies on a 0.4 mm nozzle at 0.2 mm layer[3] |
| Warping tendency1–5 | High — enclosure needed for reliable large parts[1] | Not documented |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Expert / industrial hardware only[1][2] | Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning; hardened nozzle needed[3] |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Brass fine indefinitely for unfilled grades[1] | Hardened steel required — Extrudr marks FLEX HARD CF as needing a hardened nozzle where its unfilled FLEX grades do not[3] |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Non-abrasive when unfilled[1] | Highly abrasive — standard CF composite[3] |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | Low — 3DXTech lists no special nozzle concerns, no minimum layer height and states drying is not required[6] | High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles; a flexible base plus chopped carbon fibre, which Prusa lists as a higher nozzle-clogging risk, and Extrudr requires a hardened nozzle[9][3][7] |
| Hotend requirement | Not documented | No special hot-end required, but a direct-drive extruder is (Simplify3D)[7] |
| Other hardware wear | Hydrogen fluoride released on overheating is extremely corrosive and will attack hotend and enclosure metalwork as well as people[2] | Not documented |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | Negligible (<0.1 % EMC) — fluoropolymers are essentially non-hygroscopic[1] | Moderate[10] |
| Drying temperature & time | Not documented | 60 °C for 6 h (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF)[3] |
| Symptoms when wet | Not documented | Bubbling and popping at the nozzle, stringing and a rough surface[10] |
| Effect of moisture on strength | Not applicable in practice — 3DXTech states drying is not required for PVDF, so there is no moisture-driven strength loss to measure[6] | Polymaker groups TPU with the highly hygroscopic materials; no dry-versus-conditioned figures are published[10] |
| Storage requirement | Not documented | Sealed with desiccant; often kept in a dryer during the print[10] |
| Mechanical Properties | ||
| Tensile strength (XY)MPa | 51 at break (printed XY, ISO 527)[1] | Not documented |
| Young's modulusMPa | 2450 (printed XY, ISO 527)[1] | 35 (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 527-2/5A/500)[3] |
| Elongation at break% | 25 at break (printed XY, ISO 527)[1] | 380 ultimate elongation (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 527-2/5A/500), against 490 for the unfilled FLEX HARD[3] |
| Flexural strengthMPa | 50 (printed XY, ISO 178)[1] | Not documented |
| Flexural modulusMPa | 1800 (printed XY, ISO 178)[1] | Not documented |
| Other impact data | Izod 133 J/m on extruded PVDF stock, converted from 2.49 ft-lb/in (ASTM D256)[11] | Not documented |
| Brittleness1–5 | Tough — absorbs impact, yields before breaking[1] | Very ductile — bends far before failing[3] |
| Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell | Rockwell M79 on extruded PVDF stock (ASTM D785)[11] | 70 Shore D (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 868), against 58 Shore D for the unfilled FLEX HARD[3] |
| Creep resistance / sustained load1–5 | Not documented | Below average — no CF-grade creep test; the grade is 70 Shore D where a 95A TPU bar crept from 74.5 to 82.7 mm over 5 days at 1.25 kg[3][12] |
| Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5 | Not documented | Good — 380 % ultimate elongation and a damping application set (Extrudr cites longboard wheels), below the unfilled grades[3] |
| Elasticity / flexibility1–5 | Slightly flexible in thin sections[1] | Semi-flexible[3] |
| Wear resistance & friction | Not documented | Abrasion 26 mm³ (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 4649-A) — the same as the unfilled FLEX HARD[3] |
| Thermal Properties | ||
| HDT at 0.45 MPa°C | 149 on extruded PVDF stock (ASTM D648 at 66 psi; converted from 300 °F)[11] | Not documented |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa°C | 113 on extruded PVDF stock (ASTM D648 at 264 psi; converted from 235 °F)[11] | Not documented |
| Glass transition (Tg)°C | Not documented | -24 (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF)[3] |
| Melting point / Vicat°C | 170 melting (ISO 11357)[1] | Vicat A 140 (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 306)[3] |
| Continuous service temperature°C | 149 long term and short term on extruded PVDF stock (converted from 300 °F)[11] | Not documented |
| Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K | 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[11] | Not documented |
| Flammability / UL 94 | UL 94 V-0 on extruded PVDF stock; Ensinger lists inherent flame resistance[11] | Not documented |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| UV resistance1–5 | Excellent — designed for permanent outdoor use; Ensinger lists good UV and weather resistance and high gamma radiation resistance for PVDF stock[1][11] | Good — years with some colour shift; Polymaker lists UV exposure among the conditions TPU withstands[8] |
| Chemical resistance | Outstanding — resistant to most acids, solvents and oxidising agents, which is the reason to use it[1] | Withstands industrial solvents and UV exposure (Polymaker)[8] |
| Water / humidity resistance in service1–5 | Excellent — essentially unaffected[1] | Not documented |
| Food contact | Not documented | Not food safe without specific certification (Polymaker)[8] |
| Biodegradability / compostability | Not documented | Not biodegradable[8] |
| Recyclability | Not documented | Not accepted in household plastic collection[8] |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Very high — toxic decomposition products; local exhaust mandatory. Above 315 °C thermal decomposition yields hydrofluoric acid, hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide[2] | Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission; TPU was not among the nine filaments in the chamber study[13] |
| Hazardous species emitted | 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[2] | Not documented |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Local exhaust to outside / fume hood — the SDS states local exhaust is preferred[2] | Open a window / occasional ventilation[13] |
| Dust & fibre handling hazard | 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[2] | Carbon fibre is bound in the matrix; sanding dust should not be inhaled[3] |
| Post-Processing | ||
| Sanding & machining | Not documented | Difficult to sand or smooth; Polymaker limits post-processing to trimming or tumbling[8] |
| Gluing & solvent welding | Not documented | Cyanoacrylate bonds TPU; no common solvent welds it[8] |
| Vapour / chemical smoothing | Not documented | No practical vapour smoothing[8] |
| Support material pairing | Not documented | Polymaker warns TPU supports are often very difficult to remove[8] |
| Dimensional accuracy & detail | The processing window sits well below the 315 °C decomposition threshold, so nozzle temperature must be controlled rather than raised to chase flow[1][2] | Tear strength 165 kN/m (Extrudr FLEX HARD CF, ISO 34-1B)[3] |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | THF, MEK, DMF, DMAc, NMP, DMSO and trimethyl phosphate dissolve 5–10 wt% at ambient — Arkema's active solvents, all lab reagents.[14] | DMF, DMSO, NMP and THF dissolve the TPU matrix and leave the fibre; ketones are partial solvents. Laboratory reagents.[15] |
| Softened or crazed by | Acetone, MIBK, cyclohexanone, butyl acetate and glycol ethers swell it; alkalis above pH 12 attack the homopolymer.[14][16] | Toluene and benzene swell it up to +50 % by weight at 23 °C; esters swell it severely; ethanol and IPA soften it.[15] |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | None for the workshop — the active solvents (NMP, DMAc, DMF) are laboratory reagents used for casting membranes, not joints.[14] | None practical — the true solvents (DMF, THF, NMP) are laboratory reagents and leave the joint swollen and weak.[15] |
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
- FluorX PVDF Technical Data Sheet v3 3DXTech · 2026-08 · tds
- FluorX PVDF Safety Data Sheet v1.1 3DXTech · 2026-08 · msds
- Extrudr Product Catalogue (DURAPRO PA12 data block) Extrudr · 2025-03 · tds
- 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- Extrudr TPU FLEX Hard CF — product page (1.75 mm, 0.5 and 2 kg coils, price) Extrudr (FD3D GmbH) · 2026-08 · vendor
- FluorX PVDF — product page 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
- Flexible (TPE/TPU) — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
- TPU — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Composite materials filled with carbon, kevlar or glass Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- TECAFLON PVDF natural — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- BambuLab TPU 95A HF vs Qidi TPU 95A HF — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2024-02 · test
- 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
- Kynar PVDF — Design properties: solubility and irradiation (active and latent solvents) Arkema · 2026-08 · tds
- Elastollan — Chemical properties: swelling and chemical resistance BASF · 2026-08 · tds
- Kynar PVDF resin — chemical and fuel resistance Arkema · 2026-08 · tds