Widely used to make parts that require autoclaving such as trays and handles, these hard, rigid sheets are easy to machine and thermoform. Polysulfone resists expanding and maintains its strength when exposed to heat and steam.

Sterilize your printed parts without them expanding, deforming, or weakening. These polysulfone filaments resist steam and heat, so you can sterilize parts in an autoclave. They also can be sterilized with ethylene oxide, radiation, plasma, dry heat, and cold sterilization methods. Print these filaments on a fused filament fabrication (FFF) 3D printer. Because of their high melting points, you'll need an all-metal extruder and heated printer bed to reach their minimum printing temperature. Without the heated printer bed, parts will cool too quickly and warp.

Maximum exposure temperature is the point at which a printed part will begin to deform. Above this temperature, your part will start to lose structural integrity.

When 3D printing a model with overhangs or hollow spaces, use these filaments to prevent the model from losing its shape. They support the structure during the printing and cooling process, then dissolve or snap away once the part is hardened. Use them in dual-extrusion fused filament fabrication (FFF) printers alongside your primary filament. Unlike parts with supports printed from a single filament, there’s no cutting, sanding, or polishing required.

Choose a filament that has similar printing requirements as your primary filament. You will want to choose a support filament that prints at a similar temperature as your primary filament and has the same requirements for a heated build chamber, so they cool at the same rate and won’t warp.

You should also consider how you will remove the structural support filament from your finished part.