| HS Code | 801288 |
| Density | 1.01 g/cm³ |
| Melting Point | 178 °C |
| Glass Transition Temperature | 50 °C |
| Tensile Modulus | 1600 MPa |
| Tensile Yield Stress | 45 MPa |
| Elongation At Break | >50% |
| Charpy Impact Strength 23 C | No break |
| Charpy Impact Strength 30 C | 30 kJ/m² |
| Shore Hardness D | 66 |
| Water Absorption Saturation | 1.6% |
| Melt Volume Flow Rate 230 C 2 16 Kg | 20 cm³/10min |
| Heat Deflection Temperature 1 8 Mpa | 55 °C |
As an accredited Evonik Vestamid LX9104 Nylon 12 factory, we enforce strict quality protocols—every batch undergoes rigorous testing to ensure consistent efficacy and safety standards.
| Packing | Evonik Vestamid LX9104 Nylon 12 is supplied in sealed 20 kg bags, preserving dryness and ensuring safe handling. |
| Container Loading (20′ FCL) | 20′ FCL loading of Evonik Vestamid LX9104 Nylon 12: palletized, secured drums, weight balanced, moisture-protected for safe transit. |
| Shipping | Ship Evonik Vestamid LX9104 Nylon 12 in sealed, moisture-proof packaging to prevent water absorption. Keep dry and store below recommended temperatures. Use clean, covered transport containers to avoid contamination. No special hazard classification is typical, but protect from excessive heat, dust, and direct sunlight during transit. |
| Storage | Store Evonik Vestamid LX9104 Nylon 12 in its original, tightly sealed container in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area. Protect from moisture, direct sunlight, and excessive heat. Keep away from strong oxidizers and ignition sources. Avoid prolonged storage under humid conditions; use within recommended shelf life to maintain performance. |
| Shelf Life | Store in original sealed packaging, cool and dry. Shelf life is typically two years from the date of manufacture. |
Automotive first-article fluid-line components are produced from unfilled Vestamid LX9104 powder on CO₂ laser powder-bed fusion systems using 0.1 mm layer increments and a build chamber maintained at 170–175 °C to keep the powder bed below the 176 °C melting onset of nylon 12. The powder is pre-dried in a dry-air oven at 80 °C until residual moisture falls below 0.1 wt%, measured by Karl Fischer titration in accordance with ISO 15512. For charge-air duct test coupons and fuel-vapor line mock-ups, the powder blend ratio is controlled by sieving recovered powder through a 125 µm sieve and adding virgin powder only to the extent that the melt flow rate under ISO 1133-1 remains inside the supplier specification for that powder lot. A single virgin-rich blend is used for oxidation-sensitive underhood parts because ageing at 150 °C per ISO 188 can reduce elongation before visible yellowing occurs. Printed components are conditioned at 23 °C and 50 % RH for at least 48 h before tensile testing per ISO 527-1/-2, and density is checked by ISO 1183-1. The terminal components are charge-air duct mock-ups, quick-connector test pieces, and brake vacuum channel prototypes used for engine test-cell fitment and thermal cycling, not for homologated series production fuel lines. The governing limitation is thermal oxidation at sustained underhood soak temperatures above 120 °C, where unfilled PA12 begins to lose ductility faster than glass-filled PPA alternatives.
Custom ankle-foot orthoses and prosthetic test sockets are produced from the same unfilled PA12 powder by laser sintering a patient-matched mesh generated from lower-limb CT or optical scan data. Compliance for skin-contacting external devices is assessed through ISO 10993-5 cytotoxicity testing and ISO 10993-10 sensitization testing on printed plaques after the same post-processing sequence used for the device, including bead blasting with 100–200 µm glass media and black dyeing. The lattice volume fraction is varied between 20 % and 40 % relative density to tune flexural stiffness; this is a structural ratio, not a polymer blend ratio, because the material itself remains unfilled nylon 12. Moisture conditioning is mandatory because equilibrium moisture uptake of PA12 at 23 °C and 50 % RH is low relative to PA6 but sufficient to shift flexural modulus measured by ISO 178. Steam autoclave sterilization at 121 °C is avoided because repeated exposure accelerates hydrolysis and dimensional creep; validated cleaning uses 70 % isopropanol wiped or low-temperature ethylene oxide at 55 °C. The terminal products are external orthotic shells, distal limb test sockets, and burn-mask frames, each marked for short-term skin contact only and not for mucosal or implant use. The operational boundary is that powder remnants must be removed from lattice cells before patient contact, because residual powder can cause mechanical irritation and complicates cleaning validation.
In assembly plants, end-of-arm tooling for robotic handling is printed as solid nylon 12 bodies with integrated vacuum channels and conformal clamping surfaces. The geometric ratio that matters is wall-to-channel clearance: a minimum 1.0 mm bore diameter is maintained for vacuum passages, and wall thickness around the channel is kept at 2.0 mm or greater to avoid leakage after glass-bead blasting at 0.4 MPa pressure. Build orientation is rotated 30° from the primary clamping face to reduce stair-step error on mating surfaces, and the parts are post-cured in the build chamber after the last layer to allow crystallinity to develop before removal, reducing residual curl. Compliance is verified to ISO 2768-mK for general dimensional tolerance, and the clamping faces are inspected with a coordinate measuring machine against the CAD geometry. Inserts are installed by heat-stake insertion of brass threaded bushings after local reaming to H7 tolerance. The finished components include vacuum gripper jaws, assembly fixture baseplates, and inspection nests for low-volume electric-motor assembly lines; the unfilled nylon 12 is selected because the parts can be re-dyed and re-used after fracture, and because the solid build avoids entrapped powder in functional air channels. The primary process risk is creep under sustained clamping load above 60 °C, which must be mitigated by limiting clamp force per insert or switching to stainless steel thread sleeves when the fixture is used near heated assembly stations.
| Application domain | Primary standard | Measured property | Specific boundary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automotive underhood test coupons | ISO 527-1/-2 | Tensile elongation at 23 °C | Not for homologated fuel line series production |
| Medical external orthosis shell | ISO 10993-5 / ISO 10993-10 | Cytotoxicity and sensitization | External skin contact only; no steam autoclave |
| Robotic gripper and fixture body | ISO 2768-mK | Dimensional tolerance | Vacuum channel bores ≥ 1.0 mm |
| Motorsport intake plenum | ISO 175 | Resistance to ASTM Reference Fuel C | Pressure test at 2.0 bar only |
| Protective sports lattice | ISO 179-1 | Charpy impact strength | Sports-specific certification separate |
| Electrical enclosure | UL 94 HB | Horizontal burn | Not V-2 or V-0 rated |
For a turbocharged rally engine plenum, the unfilled PA12 powder is processed into a single-piece shell with 4 mm wall thickness and 100 % solid bolt bosses to avoid internal void networks. Chemical resistance is validated by immersion of printed coupons in ASTM Reference Fuel C at 23 °C for 72 h according to ISO 175, with retained tensile elongation measured per ISO 527-2. The powder blend ratio is conservative: only virgin powder is used for the first attempt, and any recovered powder is excluded from the build if the part is to be pressure-tested at 2.0 bar with tracer gas. Because continuous service on the plenum wall can reach 110–120 °C, thermal shielding is used on the turbine side and the flange sealing face is machined flat after printing to a surface roughness of Ra 1.6 µm to permit a reliable elastomer gasket seal. The terminal product is a one-off intake plenum or oil separator housing used in endurance testing; it is not a homologated road-going component, and inspection for wall porosity by computed tomography is required before installation. The critical threshold is the heat deflection temperature under load: at 0.45 MPa the material may survive short excursions, but continuous exposure above 120 °C in the presence of hydrocarbon vapors produces measurable softening and creep on bolted flanges.
Protective sports equipment based on laser-sintered PA12 lattices is produced for short-series custom-fit impact components where injection molding tooling cannot be justified. The structural ratio is the lattice relative density, commonly set between 30 % and 45 % in the high-impact zone, with a 1.5 mm solid outer skin to prevent lattice collapse during post-build bead blasting. Flexural modulus and impact strength are measured on printed specimens according to ISO 178 and ISO 179-1, respectively, after the same dyeing and conditioning history as the final product. Moisture absorption is an operational boundary: stored components must be re-conditioned at 23 °C and 50 % RH before impact testing, and the use of solvent-based cleaners is restricted to 70 % isopropanol because strong polar solvents can induce stress cracking in thin lattice beams. The terminal components are custom shin guard shells, back protector inserts, and boot sole orthotic plates, each requiring sports-specific regulatory certification before sale; the PA12 print provides only the mechanical substrate, not the finished certification. The distinctive failure mode in high-impact use is lattice node fracture after repeated impacts above 5 J Charpy energy, which is monitored by batch testing rather than by visual inspection of outer skins alone.
Low-voltage sensor housings and cable management clips are printed with 1.5 mm nominal wall thickness and snap-fit cantilever roots dimensioned at 0.6 times the wall thickness to reduce notch sensitivity. Flammability is evaluated according to UL 94 HB on printed plaques with the same surface roughness as production; unfilled nylon 12 is not a V-2 or V-0 material, so the electrical enclosure design must maintain spacing to live parts through a metal shield or rely on the end-use equipment standard IEC 62368-1 for a low-energy source. Comparative tracking index can be measured per IEC 60112, but values on laser-sintered surfaces vary with build orientation and post-process vapor smoothing; validation on the actual surface finish is required before a printed housing is used in a creepage distance calculation. A 100 % virgin powder blend is specified for electrical enclosures to minimize conductive contamination from recovered powder batches. The final products are sensor enclosures, harness clips, and low-voltage junction covers for pilot production; the material is excluded from applications requiring V-0 flammability or continuous service above 80 °C under electrical load. The limiting incompatibility is exposure to concentrated formic acid or phenolic solvents at elevated temperature, which attacks nylon 12 and can erase threaded features and snap-fit retention in a few hours.
Competitive Evonik Vestamid LX9104 Nylon 12 prices that fit your budget—flexible terms and customized quotes for every order.
For samples, pricing, or more information, please contact us at +8615365186327 or mail to admin@ascent-chem.com.
We will respond to you as soon as possible.
Tel: +8615365186327
Email: admin@ascent-chem.com
Flexible payment, competitive price, premium service - Inquire now!
Evonik Vestamid LX9104 is a polyamide 12 (nylon 12) powder supplied for laser sintering powder bed fusion of polymers. The product designation identifies an unfilled PA12 system with controlled particle size distribution, bulk density, and thermal behavior intended for CO₂-laser systems. Under DIN EN ISO/ASTM 52900:2021 terminology, the material is classified as a feedstock for polymer powder bed fusion; it is not a general-purpose extrusion or injection-molding compound, although the same base chemistry appears in other Vestamid grades. Industrial literature describes the grade for functional prototypes and low-volume parts where PA12-typical toughness and low moisture uptake are required. All application-specific performance claims must be verified with mechanical testing and regulatory review. The powder is supplied in sealed containers to limit moisture uptake and foreign-particle contamination.
The specification of Vestamid LX9104 is defined by a combination of thermal, mechanical, and moisture-absorption data. Table 1 summarizes selected representative values reported for laser-sintered specimens; values vary with build orientation, powder refresh fraction, laser energy density, and post-build conditioning. These data are not a certificate of conformance and must be confirmed against the current Evonik technical datasheet for lot-specific acceptance.
| Property | Test method | Representative value |
|---|---|---|
| Density | ISO 1183-1 | 1.01 g/cm³ |
| Melting peak | ISO 11357-1 | 176–180 °C |
| Tensile strength | ISO 527-2 | 45–48 MPa |
| Tensile modulus | ISO 527-2 | 1,500–1,600 MPa |
| Elongation at break | ISO 527-2 | 15–20% |
| Flexural modulus | ISO 178 | 1,300–1,500 MPa |
| Water absorption at 23 °C, 24 h | ISO 62 | ≤0.3% |
For mechanical acceptance testing, tensile bars and flexural specimens should be built in multiple orientations according to ISO/ASTM 52921 and tested under ISO 527-2 and ISO 178. Z-direction tensile elongation is commonly lower than XY-direction values in laser-sintered PA12 because interlayer coalescence limits molecular diffusion across the bed interface. Published data for this specific configuration is limited with respect to minimum Z-direction values; therefore production qualification should not rely on XY data alone.
The primary distinction lies in powder-bed processability rather than base polymer chemistry. General-purpose PA12 pellets are often characterized by melt volume-flow rate under ISO 1133-1:2022, while laser-sintering grades such as LX9104 are controlled by particle size distribution, Hausner ratio, and the melt-crystallization interval. The powder is designed to remain free-flowing at feed-bed temperatures close to 165 °C and to coalesce under the local energy input of a 30–70 W CO₂ laser operating at 10.6 µm. This requires a narrow melting peak and a sufficiently wide supercooling window; if crystallization onset approaches the preheat temperature, curl and warpage increase. The datasheet therefore emphasizes thermal parameters in addition to tensile values.
Compared with glass-bead-filled or carbon-fiber-filled PA12 powders, LX9104 is unfilled. Tensile modulus remains in the 1,500–1,600 MPa range, while elongation at break is typically higher than filled systems, which frequently fall below 10%. This lower stiffness is relevant for snap-fit covers, ductile brackets, and air-duct geometries where compliance is required. Compared with PA11 powders, the melting point is lower by approximately 20–25 °C, which reduces preheat temperatures and thermal gradients in the powder bed; PA11 may provide different elongation and chemical performance in some datasets, but direct substitution is not recommended without rebuilding process parameters.
Relative to PA6, Vestamid LX9104 has a lower melting temperature by roughly 40–50 °C and considerably lower moisture absorption. Dry-as-molded PA6 can exhibit tensile modulus values above 2,500 MPa under ISO 527-2, exceeding laser-sintered PA12 stiffness, but that stiffness is accompanied by higher hygroscopic swelling and process energy demand. Compared with injection-molding PA12 compounds, laser-sintered LX9104 parts contain residual porosity; sintered density is below the solid density given in the datasheet. The difference is measurable under ISO 1183-1 and depends on energy density and powder bed temperature. Consequently, tensile and flexural values of sintered specimens differ from molded plaques and must be reported with build parameters.
On production-scale SLS platforms with nitrogen inert gas, the powder bed is normally held between 165 °C and 175 °C. If preheat exceeds the crystallization onset temperature of the PA12 grade, partially melted particles can sinter prematurely and reduce powder reuse quality. Field observations on 70 W CO₂ laser equipment with 0.1 mm layer thickness indicate that oxygen concentration in the chamber should remain below 1.0 vol%; excursions above that level promote yellowing and an increase in molecular weight or gel content in reclaimed powder. Powder bed temperature uniformity must be verified with thermal imaging or multiple bed thermocouples because cold regions produce poor interlayer adhesion, while hot regions generate curl and part growth. The melt peak near 176–180 °C and an approximate crystallization onset near 150 °C create a working interval of roughly 25 °C; this interval is adequate for standard SLS but narrower than some filled nylons. Equipment manufacturers specify maximum allowable bed temperature offsets of ±2 °C to ±3 °C on some platforms, making closed-loop control mandatory for repeat production.
During coalescence, zero-shear viscosity of the melt is not directly measured in the powder bed; instead, the laser energy density must be controlled to avoid over-sintering. Energy density values around 0.1–0.3 J/mm³ are reported in general PA12 laser-sintering literature, but machine-specific calibration is required. The exact threshold for LX9104 has not been published in sufficient detail; users must determine the optimal laser power and scan speed through tensile coupons built to ISO/ASTM 52921. Reclaimed powder should be sieved through a 150 µm mesh before blending. In production, blends of virgin and reclaimed powder are often used in ratios up to 50% reclaimed, but this limit is not universal; tensile elongation and melt-flow index should be monitored when increasing the reclaimed fraction. The reuse of PA12 powders alters melt viscosity and crystallinity; vendor recommendations generally specify refresh ratios and periodic testing of melt volume-flow rate under ISO 1133-1:2022, but published data for this specific configuration is limited.
Moisture uptake alters powder flow and melt rheology. Although PA12 absorbs less water than PA6 or PA66, storage in high-humidity environments above 60% RH can increase surface moisture sufficiently to cause powder clumping in the feed bed. Pre-drying at 80 °C for 4–6 h is standard for PA12 powders, but the exact drying time must be adjusted to residual moisture measurements. Batch-to-batch variance in powder flow has been observed during high-humidity months; incoming lots should be tested for pourability, for example with a Hall flowmeter or ISO 6186 methods, and residual moisture before release to production. The material is hydrophobic relative to short-chain polyamides; the ISO 62 24-h water absorption at 23 °C is typically below 0.3%, whereas PA6 grades can reach 2.5–3.0% at 50% relative humidity. This lower water uptake improves dimensional stability and process consistency in geometries with thin walls.
Post-processing of laser-sintered Vestamid LX9104 parts includes depowdering, bead blasting, and optional sealing or dyeing. Because the material is unfilled, solvent dyeing and aqueous dyeing are both used in production, but dye uptake may vary with powder aging and part density. Applications documented in industrial literature include functional manifolds, ducts, housings, clips, and ergonomic jigs where impact resistance and low moisture sensitivity are valued. The material is not automatically suited to food-contact or implantable devices; such uses require independent migration testing under EU 10/2011, FDA 21 CFR, or ISO 10993 pathways before implementation.
The chemical resistance of PA12 includes resistance to oils, fuels, greases, and aliphatic solvents; it is attacked by strong mineral acids, formic acid, and some phenols at elevated temperature. This performance is common to semicrystalline PA12 and is not unique to LX9104; the powder form does not change the base chemical resistance. For applications involving aggressive fluids, the chemical resistance should be tested under stress according to ISO 22088-3 or an equivalent environmental stress cracking method. Regulatory declarations for REACH SVHC and RoHS 2011/65/EU should be requested from Evonik for the specific lot. The product safety data sheet lists handling limits for respirable powder and dust explosion; dust collection systems should be grounded. No statement in this document replaces the need for process qualification.
