TraceMatter™ PHA 3D Printing Filament — Guide & Support

PHA-based biocomposite filament

TraceMatter™ is SoftTrace Studio's PHA-based biocomposite filament for FDM 3D printing. blended with natural biomass residue. It prints differently from standard PLA or PETG, and getting good results takes a little more care and calibration.

‍This page has two parts: the technical guide below, and support if you're still having trouble after working through it.

Stuck on a print right now? Jump straight to Support. We're happy to help.

1. Basic specifications and physical properties

Filament specifications

  • Net weight: 750 g

  • Diameter: 1.75 mm

  • Length: 240 m

Physical properties (injection-moulded specimen data)

  • Tensile strength: 16–19 MPa

  • Tensile modulus: 950–1,200 MPa

  • Nominal strain at break: > 50%

  • Notched Izod impact strength: 5–15 kJ/m²

  • Flexural strength: 16–23 MPa

  • Flexural modulus: 700–1,100 MPa

  • Heat deflection temperature (HDT): ≥ 85°C

2. Recommended print settings

PHA sits between PLA and TPU in printing behaviour. It runs on most common FDM printers that take 1.75 mm filament, including Bambu Lab and Creality machines, though each printer needs its own calibration. Use a nozzle of 0.4 mm or larger.

TraceMatter™ has been tested and confirmed compatible with:

  • Open-frame printers: Bambu Lab A1 mini, A1 and A2L; and comparable machines.

  • Enclosed printers: Bambu Lab P1S, P2S, H2S, H2C, H2D, X1C, X2D, Snapmaker U1; and comparable machines.

  • Keep the front door open and the top cover off throughout the print.

A starting point for your first print

New to PHA? Download our starter 3MF project with the settings we use in our own print tests.

Download starter project (.3MF)

Use it as a starting point for your first trial. For the best results on your setup, we still recommend calibrating flow rate and flow dynamics (K-value) for your printer and printing environment.

Temperature and speed

  • Nozzle temperature: 190–230°C (210°C strongly recommended). If layer adhesion is weak, raise the temperature and speed slightly.

  • Print speed: ≤ 300 mm/s, Max volumemetric Speed: 6 mm³/s

  • Flow Rate and Flow Dynamics (K-value): PHA is sensitive to ambient temperature. Calibrate both for your own environment, as the ideal values vary by location.

Build plate

  • Primary plate: Bambu Lab Cool Plate SuperTack. Set the bed to 20–45°C. A skirt , glue or raft is recommended.

  • Alternative plate: Textured PEI plate. Set the bed to 45–60°C. A skirt, glue or raft is required.

Cooling and fans

  • Part cooling fan: 100%

  • Auxiliary part cooling fan: 0%

Skirt and support settings

  • Skirt width: 10 mm

  • Brim gap: 0 mm

  • Elephant foot compensation: 0 mm

  • Top Z distance: 0.25 mm

  • Support/model XY gap: 0.5 mm

3. Special notes and precautions

Filament feeding

TraceMatter™ is relatively soft and flexible, so it may bend or jam during automated feeding. Feed it directly from an external spool holder. Do not use AMS or other automatic filament-changing systems. For multi-colour projects, we recommend the Snapmaker U1, which uses four independent toolheads and avoids repeatedly feeding the filament through a shared material-changing system.

Printer enclosure

To help prevent nozzle clogs, keep the front door open or the top cover removed throughout the print.

Calibrating a new spool

TraceMatter™ depends on microbial fermentation, so it's sensitive to temperature and the ideal settings shift slightly from batch to batch. When a new spool arrives, calibrate in this order: Temperature Tower, then Flow Rate, then Flow Dynamics.

Warping

TraceMatter™ warps more readily than PLA filaments, and bridging and overhangs need extra care. Three things help significantly:

  • A low-temperature, high-adhesion build plate: use a cool plate to maintain good adhesion at a lower bed temperature and help reduce warping.

  • Glue on the build plate: this cuts down warping substantially.

  • A PLA raft first: print a raft layer in PLA, then switch to TraceMatter™ for the rest of the print.

Moisture and drying

Pure PHA is naturally hydrophobic and resists moisture-related brittleness. The added biomass residue, such as seaweed residue, absorbs moisture readily in humid conditions. If print quality drops or you hear a popping or hissing sound during extrusion, dry the filament before continuing (recommended: 65°C for 4 hours).

Odour

None of our filaments contain added fragrance; they retain their natural scent. The seaweed-residue variant gives off a faint briny smell on contact with hot water.

Support

Followed the guide above and still running into trouble?

Tell us what's happening, and include a photo of the print if you can. We'll get back to you as soon as we're able.