Recent Advances in Welding and Joining Metallic Materials

Dear Colleagues,

Advanced welding and joining processes are pivotal to the evolving and continuously emerging landscape of advanced manufacturing and materials processing, particularly for monolithic metallic systems where exceptional prolonged performance is a key. With rising demands for structural efficiency, sustainability, and digital integration, it is incumbent upon us to develop and characterize joining and welding strategies that not only join materials, but that also control emerging microstructure, improve mechanical properties and enhance performance, and enable predictive quality assurance.

For this Special Issue of the Journal of Manufacturing and Materials Processing, we invite high-quality contributions focusing on innovative welding and joining methodologies that align with modern manufacturing paradigms and concurrent societal needs. Priority will be given to studies that demonstrate process–structure–property–performance–recyclability integration, smart process control, joining advanced or dissimilar alloys, and environmentally conscious or green welding technologies.

The main focus of interest are the following topics:

• Solid-state welding (friction stir, linear friction, or ultrasonic);
• Laser and hybrid welding with in situ monitoring;
• Additive repair or joining processes combined with WAAM or DED;
• Multi-scale modeling and digital twins for weld process optimization;
• Sustainable welding practices, energy efficiency, and lifecycle analysis;
• AI/ML-enhanced defect prediction, diagnostics, and adaptive control.

Research may address macro- and/or micro-scale phenomena, residual stresses, phase transformations, and the inter-relationship between materials design and welding processing parameters. We also invite state-of-the-art reviews and case studies demonstrating industry applications, particularly in the aerospace, automotive, energy, and defense fields.

Special topics to consider are as follows:

• Intelligent welding and joining technologies;
• Microstructural evolution and mechanical performance;
• Dissimilar and lightweight alloy joining;
• Friction-based and solid-state welding innovations;
• Process simulation, digital twins, and data-driven models;
• In situ diagnostics and non-destructive evaluation;
• Sustainable and low-energy welding processes;
• Residual stress engineering and performance modeling.

This Special Issue seeks to showcase transformative developments that bring together materials science, manufacturing innovation, and digital tools to define the next generation of welding and joining technologies.

We look forward to your contributions.

Dr. Kapil Gangwar
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Manufacturing and Materials Processing is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• intelligent welding and joining technologies
• microstructural evolution and mechanical performance
• dissimilar and lightweight alloy joining
• friction-based and solid-state welding innovations
• process simulation, digital twins, and data-driven models
• in situ diagnostics and non-destructive evaluation
• sustainable and low-energy welding processes
• residual stress engineering and performance modeling