Difference between PA6, PA11 and PA12
Polyamide (PA) commonly known as Nylon is possibly the largest engineering thermoplastic material. It finds major usage in technical applications of several application segments, such as automobile, electronic and packaging. There are different types of polyamides having different properties and obviously different applications. Polyamide can be mainly divided into 3 types, PA6, PA11 and PA12.
PA 6: PA6 is normally made of recycled material, which makes it the cheapest among theses three types. And it is very hard and tough material even at low temperatures. If you don’t have high requirement of tubing performance, PA6 is enough for you to use.
PA 11: PA11 is of very low water absorption and excellent dimensional stability in comparison to other polyamides (exception of PA 12), lower hardness and stiffness than PA 6. PA11 has the best impact strength of all polyamides, but it is also relatively low in moisture absorption. It features a high degree of chemical resistance and the ability to accept high loadings of fillers. However, relative to other types of PA, grade 11 is higher in cost and less heat resistant.
PA 12: PA12 has better impact properties than PA 6 but not as good as PA 11, as well as the best resistance of stress corrosion of all polyamides. Compared to other grades, PA 12 has a relatively low concentration of amide groups in the polymer chain, which gives it the lowest water absorption of any commercial grade. It also has good to excellent resistance to oils, fuels, hydraulic fluids, solvents and salt. The material also resists stress cracking and abrasion.