Dear Colleagues,

In the last decades in the field of joining processes, numerous innovations and novel techniques have been developed since more and more new materials need to be connected in permanent or non-permanent ways in both industrial and civil application. The necessity of fuel consumption reduction has led to the use of ever lighter structures and/or the desertion of the use of techniques that increase the total weight of the structure itself. Moreover, the techniques to be employed should be less energy consuming and less polluting. The modern scenario shows a variety of solutions that still have to be validated, and for which it is necessary to develop design instruments for the correct application of the joining techniques.

Among the others, friction stir welding, self-piercing riveting, laser welding, adhesive joining, clinching, etc., are examples of techniques that are largely employed, but by varying the application field and the materials/thickness involved, it is not easily possible to predict the properties of the final joint.

The research community is involved in the development of testing methods, designing processes useful for the better usage of the joining process for each field of interest.

This Special Issue is addressed to the inquire about recent developments in the field of the Properties and Structural Evaluation of Joining Processes, in order to the understanding both the mechanisms underlying the formation of the joints and the behaviour of these last under the various stress states that the joint can undergo. The aim is to increase the knowledge, the understanding of the behaviour of junctions, the failure modes, and the field of applicability of the various techniques.

The articles presented in this Special Issue will cover various topics, ranging from, but not limited to, the following: properties of different joint configurations (i.e., single lap, double lap, T-joint, etc.) between similar or dissimilar materials (metals and/or composite structures); combination of different joining techniques (i.e., bonding–fastening), finite element analysis of the joining processes, and failure modes.

Dr. Chiara Borsellino
Prof. Dr. Guido Di Bella
Guest Editors

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. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2600 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.

• joining
• fastening
• bonding
• testing
• finite element analysis