▎ 摘　　要

NOVELTY - Fused filament fabrication (FFF) filament, comprises feedstock material comprising a polyaryletherketone (PAEK), which is a copolymer comprising repeat units (I) and (II), and at least one filler means, where at least 95 mol.% of the copolymer repeat units are (I) and (II) having a molar ratio of 60:40-80:20 and the PAEK has a shear viscosity (SV) of 100-400 Pa.seconds as measured using capillary rheometry at 400 degrees C at a shear rate of 1000s-1 by extrusion through a tungsten carbide capillary die of 0.5 mm diameter and 8.0 mm length, and the fillers comprises at least 5 wt.% and up to 38 wt.%. USE - The filament is useful in a process for formation of a component in a layer-wise fashion by sequentially depositing layers of the feedstock material in layers, each layer defining a cross-section of the component (claimed). ADVANTAGE - The filament exhibits improved thermal and mechanical properties. DETAILED DESCRIPTION - Fused filament fabrication (FFF) filament, comprises feedstock material comprising a polyaryletherketone (PAEK), which is a copolymer comprising repeat units of formula (I) and (II), and at least one filler means, where at least 95 mol.% of the copolymer repeat units are (I) and (II) having a molar ratio of 60:40-80:20 and the PAEK has a shear viscosity (SV) of 100-400 Pa.seconds as measured using capillary rheometry at 400 degrees C at a shear rate of 1000s-1 by extrusion through a tungsten carbide capillary die of 0.5 mm diameter and 8.0 mm length, and the fillers comprises at least 5 wt.% and up to 38 wt.%. INDEPENDENT CLAIMS are also included for: (1) manufacturing (M1) a component, comprising (i) selecting a filament, and (ii) forming the component in a layer-wise fashion by feeding the filament through an extruder nozzle and sequentially depositing layers of feedstock material so that many layers correspond to respective cross-sections of the component, where a first layer of feedstock material forms a base layer of the component and each subsequently deposited layer of feedstock material forms a subsequent layer of the component and bonds to the respective preceding layer of the component on contact with the preceding layer whereby the component is formed from the mutually bonded portions of the layers corresponding to respective cross-sections of the component; and (2) improving (P1) the printability of a fused filament fabrication filament, comprising extruding feedstock material through a die to form a filament, the feedstock material, annealing the filament at a temperature between a glass transition temperature Tg of the feedstock material and a melt temperature Tm of the feedstock material, for a period of time sufficient to increase the temperature of the filament to above the glass transition temperature of the feedstock material.