Hybrid lattice cylindrical tubes based on triply periodic minimal surfaces for tunable multi-stage deformation and superior energy absorption

This study presented a systematic experimental and finite element (FE) investigation of uniform and hybrid lattice cylindrical tubes (LCTs) designed using Diamond, Gyroid, and Primitive triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) topologies and fabricated via selective laser melting (SLM). Quasi-static axial crushing tests, together with validated FE simulations, were employed to reveal how topology hybridization governed sequential collapse, multi-stage plateau, and crashworthiness. Compared with uniform counterparts, hybrid LCTs exhibited distinct multi-stage deformation behavior arising from the progressive densification of low- to high-strength morphologies, enabling tunable load-bearing responses and improved force regulation. Among the hybrid configurations, the Diamond–Gyroid–Primitive (DGP) LCT demonstrated the most favorable balance of crashworthiness, reducing initial peak force ( F p ) by 29.7–60.9% and increasing crushing force efficiency ( C F E ) by 79.6–112.2% relative to its constituent topologies. Relative to uniform Gyroid- and Primitive-based LCTs, DGP achieved increases of 38.9% and 82.3% in energy absorption ( E A ), 33.8% and 72.1% in specific energy absorption ( S E A ), and 7.6% and 49.5% in mean crushing force ( F m ), respectively. Furthermore, the results showed that the energy absorption behavior of hybrid LCTs followed the Gibson–Ashby scaling law with prediction errors below 3.2%, while the deformation mode evolved from layer-by-layer collapse to uniform and folding modes with increasing relative density ( ρ ¯ ).