Design guidelines for laser powder bed fusion of triply periodic minimal surface structures for applications in smart reactors

Abstract Additive Manufacturing (AM), particularly Laser Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB/M), has transformed the production of complex metallic structures, enabling applications in smart reactors where enhanced heat and mass transfer at minimal pressure drop are critical. Triply Periodic Minimal Surface (TPMS) structures, such as Gyroid-TPSf and Schwarz-Diamond-TPSf geometries, offer unique advantages due to their high surface area-to-volume ratios, tunable porosity, and zero mean curvature. However, their manufacturability using PBF-LB/M remains underexplored, especially for demanding applications in process engineering that require structural integrity under extreme conditions. This study investigates the design and manufacturability of TPMS structures using 316L stainless steel via PBF-LB/M, focusing on the interaction of the key parameters porosity, unit cell size, and sheet thickness, of which two are independent variables while the third is a dependent variable. Through numerical simulations, experimental validation, and process optimization, practical design guidelines are developed. In this study, the design parameters of Gyroid-TPSf and Schwarz-Diamond-TPSf samples include porosities ranging from 70 to 90% and unit cell sizes from 2 to 20 mm. The results indicate that specifically, at large unit cell sizes (e.g., 20 mm), the decreased curvature radius reduces self-supporting effects, leading to insufficient mechanical stability during printing and resulting in local deformation. Conversely, at small unit cell sizes combined with high porosity levels (e.g., 2 mm and 90%), the sheet thickness becomes critically thin, often below the printable resolution, resulting in incomplete or fragile structures. CFD simulations were validated against experimental data across various volume flow rates. This work enables a knowledge-based selection of a suitable type of TPMS and its design parameters depending on the required flow characteristics in a given process engineering task while maintaining manufacturability. In conclusion, the study underscores the need for further refinement of design and manufacturing processes to fully exploit their benefits.