Metal Additive Manufacturing presents compelling solutions for sustainable production, surpassing conventional manufacturing process chains with inherent advantages such as near-net-shape fabrication, proficiency in challenging metal alloys and enhanced geometric complexity for lightweight designs. On the other hand, the surface integrity of AM metal parts often necessitates optimization to realize desired functional surfaces and precisely tuned mechanical properties. This session will explore research contributions addressing these challenges through post-processing, finishing operations and thermal treatments of AM metal components.

ICEAF IX conference invites researchers, engineers, and academics to contribute to a special session dedicated to exploring the applications of data analytics and artificial intelligence, specifically machine learning, in engineering. This special session aims to bring together experts from academia and industry to share insights, methodologies, and advancements in leveraging data-driven approaches for enhancing materials design, predicting fatigue and fracture behavior, and estimating the properties of engineering materials. Special session will provide a platform for discussions on the latest advancements and future directions in this rapidly evolving field.

Topics of interest include but are not limited to:

• Data-driven materials design and optimization
• Predictive modeling for fatigue and fracture analysis
• Estimation of materials' behavior and properties through machine learning
• Novel applications of data analytics in engineering alloys and metals
• Multiscale approaches integrating data analytics for mechanical behavior understanding
• Virtual testing, digital twins, and AI implementation in materials engineering
• Methodological frameworks for machine learning applications in engineering

Lightweight materials (high-strength metallic alloys, polymers, composites, and hybrid materials) and structures play a central role in modern engineering systems, driven by the demand for improved performance, energy efficiency, and sustainability. Their reliable application requires a thorough understanding of mechanical behaviour and material properties not only in the as-produced condition, but also as they evolve under service-related degradation mechanisms.

This session aims to bring together experimental, computational, and data-driven contributions addressing the mechanical response, damage evolution, and failure behaviour of lightweight materials and structures across their lifecycle. Emphasis is placed on the influence of manufacturing routes, microstructural features, and environmental exposure on mechanical behaviour, performance and structural integrity. Contributions addressing degradation processes such as fatigue, corrosion, wear, and environmentally assisted damage, as well as their interaction with loading history, are particularly encouraged. The session welcomes studies spanning multiple length scales and methodologies, including advanced characterization techniques, multiscale modelling, and the use of material property databases and digital tools to support design, validation, and failure prevention strategies in lightweight engineering applications.

The scientific session “Simulation of Mechanical Behavior”, will include numerical, analytical or combined numerical-analytical methods for modeling the mechanical response of materials under static, impact or fatigue loading conditions. Crack growth and fracture problems will also be investigated and modelling approaches ranging from micro to macro scale level will be examined. Comparisons of simulations using the methods with experimental results are highly encouraged.
 

Fiber-reinforced composite structures are well established in lightweight engineering applications across aerospace, automotive, and marine industries. However, understanding and predicting failure in such structures is still challenging and requires a thorough knowledge of the underlying damage mechanisms as well as reliable analytical and numerical modelling tools. This session focuses on experimental, analytical, and computational approaches to characterize failure initiation and progression in composite structures and their joints, including damage at the ply and laminate level. Contributions addressing damage-tolerant design strategies, tailored laminate architectures or crack arrest features, are equally welcome. Work linking experimental validation with modelling efforts, as well as contributions considering the use of conventional fibers (carbon or glass) and natural fibers (flax, hemp, jute) from a sustainability perspective, is especially encouraged.

Advances in additive manufacturing (AM) puts this key enabling technology in the limelight among other physical processing routes for complex net shapes and multi-material components. Variations in physicochemical and mechanical properties of additively manufactured products originate mostly from surface conditions, defects, feedstock and build anisotropy, micro/nanostructural features which are expected to alter the material behaviour. These properties subsequently affect the structural integrity  and  in-service  performance  in terms  of  corrosion, fracture, mechanical and wear behaviour etc. Moreover, additive manufacturing is often followed by post processing such as heat treatments and hot/cold isostatic pressing, which would also influence/alter the microstructure and defects and subsequently the mechanical  properties  and  structural  integrity  of  the material. The aim of this session is to elevate the understanding of the behavior of additively manufactured materials in comparison with materials produced through conventional processing routes such as casting, rolling, extrusion, forging, etc. Emphasis will be given on the effect of processing and post-processing on degradation mechanisms via an understanding of the process Parameters on   the   micro/nanostructure,   surface   conditions, material texture /anisotropy and mechanical / environmental behaviour and other functionalities (e.g. magnetic behaviour). Simulations and modelling of processing and (micro) structures are necessary to verify the performance of AM materials and products. Abstracts should thus refer to experimental and/or theoretical/modelling studies which focus on and/or relate various aspects within processing, microstructure, properties and performance of additive manufactured materials or products.        

The session addresses the following topics:

• Modern and emerging AM processes and their effect on improved material performance.
• Breakthrough performance and applications for AM materials.
• AM processes and benchmarking of different process routes on the same material.
• Innovative advanced materials with new or improved functionalities produced by additive manufacturing.
• New material and geometry design possibilities targeting to optimum combination of properties.
• Hybrid and composite materials.
• Advanced characterisation, modelling and testing of AM materials.
  In-situ, real time monitoring of AM processing.
   

Understanding and mitigating the degradation of materials and structures exposed to aggressive environments is a critical challenge across many engineering sectors. This session focuses on the fundamental and applied aspects of corrosion, wear, and tribology that control the durability, reliability, and lifetime of materials and surfaces operating under mechanical and environmental loading.

Topics include corrosion mechanisms and kinetics in aggressive environments, localized corrosion processes, high-temperature and marine corrosion, corrosion of steel in concrete and infrastructure durability, corrosion of biomaterials, as well as stress corrosion cracking, corrosion fatigue, and hydrogen-related degradation. Contributions addressing corrosion protection strategies, inhibitors, advanced coatings, surface engineering, electrochemical characterization techniques, and non-destructive evaluation methods are particularly encouraged.

In addition, the session highlights advances in tribology and wear science, including sliding, abrasive, fretting, erosive, and high-temperature wear, along with tribological behavior in lubricated and unlubricated systems. Emphasis is placed on understanding wear mechanisms and system dynamics, as well as on advanced tribo-characterization and wear testing methods. Special focus is given to coupled degradation phenomena. such as tribocorrosion, erosion–corrosion, and corrosive wear, which are increasingly relevant in applications ranging from energy and marine systems to aerospace, infrastructure, and biomedical devices.

Simulation based on computational solid mechanics models describe the response of structures, as a function of their geometry, loading, boundary conditions, material properties and manufacturing process. Digital Twin Validation i.e. 'the process of determining the degree to which a model is an accurate representation of the real world, from the perspective of the intended uses of the model', is of the most important aspects of engineering simulation. It is the responsibility of the digital twin users to perform sufficient validation of the models developed, by reference to experiments specifically designed for this purpose. Optical measurement and other relevant experimental methods have reached a sufficient technology readiness level that enable displacement or strain data over large areas or even the entire structure to be reliably captured during an experimental test and thereafter visualized and analyzed. Such developments have provided the background for a more comprehensive approach to model validation used in engineering design and evaluation of structural integrity, which could lead to optimized and less conservative designs. An important parameter in digital twins is the mechanical performance of the materials and how it is affected by the manufacturing process, especially when recycled materials are used. During the session, important recent advances on simulation model development, validation methodologies and the performance of recycled composites will be presented by researchers from industry and academia, focusing on validation of novel aircraft structural components and structural details.
 

Impact and crashworthiness are two critical aspects of composite structures, approached in contrasting ways. Impacts, whether high-energy or low-energy, can lead to failures in these materials. Therefore, it is essential to understand these phenomena in order to improve design requirements and enhance the overall performance of composite structures. Conversely, crashworthiness refers to the effective use of material failure as a beneficial mechanism, allowing for the dissipation of impact energy to protect occupants or goods within a vehicle.

This session will explore innovative research, methodologies, and applications related to the performance of composite materials and structures in impact and crash scenarios. The session particularly encourages contributions that focus on advancements in energy absorption mechanisms, progressive damage evolution, high-rate material behaviour, and failure mode characterisation. Case studies from the automotive, aerospace, and emerging mobility sectors are welcome, alongside fundamental academic investigations. Additionally, experimental, analytical, and/or numerical studies are welcome
 

This session will focus on advanced non-destructive testing (NDT) and structural health monitoring (SHM) technologies, highlighting their role in transitioning from damage detection to proactive failure prevention. This session is open to all applications of all NDT methods (including but not limited to ultrasonic, acoustic emission, X-ray, thermography, eddy current, etc.) and SHM methods on any structures/components made of different materials, including but not limited to composites, concrete, ceramics, 3D printed materials, cultural heritage items. Presentations on novel applications of NDT/SHM techniques in various fields, such as aerospace, civil engineering, materials characterisation, etc. are expected. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, damage detection, identification, and localization, modelling/simulation, signal processing, and various industrial applications