Metal Additive Manufacturing (MAM) process has been established as an industrial process for customized and intricate metallic components. It is one of the growing technologies proving its potential in numerous fields by introducing the latest processing methods. The significant growth in this technology is partially fueled by its ability to manufacture parts that could be performance-beneficial and commercially utilizable in various industries. The adaptability of metal AM processes has prompted innovation across various industries with applications spanning defense, aerospace, medical, dental, automotive, and oil & gas sectors. Each industry benefits from the unique abilities of metal AM; for instance, material efficiency, design flexibility, lead time reduction, and the creation of lightweight and complex structures that were unachievable through traditional methods can now be achieved. Therefore, this review article analyzes metal AM, describing its types, technological challenges, environmental & business considerations, energy consumption, applications, and future trends. Initially, the article introduces primary categories of metal AM, elaborating their mechanism and working principles, later, it focuses on the industrial contributions of metal AM, technological challenges, and business considerations. The outlook of this technology highlights emerging materials and technologies, such as the inclusion of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) to predict defects, optimize process parameters, and enhance the quality of products. Furthermore, advanced materials like high entropy alloys (HEAs) are being discussed to broaden the functionality of AM parts. Metal AM is playing a critical role in shaping the future of manufacturing by offering customization, efficiency, and sustainability in the industries. The article aims to provide a general understanding of metal AM while highlighting key technological advancements and future research directions to expand its applications in various sectors further.

Dye-sensitized solar cells are gaining interest in the aerospace industry, extending their applications from solar-powered drones to origami-style space-based solar power stations due to their flexibility, light weightiness, and transparency. The major issue with its widespread commercial use is the employment of expensive Pt-based counter electrodes. In this study, an attempt has been made to replace the Pt with Polyaniline (PANI)/Molybdenum sulfide (MoS₂) nanocomposite. The nanocomposites i.e., PANI-0.5wt% MoS₂, PANI-2wt%MoS₂, PANI-5wt%MoS₂, and PANI-7wt%MoS₂and PANI-9wt%MoS₂, have been synthesized and compared with standard Pt-based CE. Scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction methods have been utilized to study both surface morphology and structural composition. Fourier transform infrared has also been used to identify redox-active functionalities. Electron impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry have been employed to study electron transfer and catalytic activity. Finally, I-V testing has been conducted using a sun simulator. A maximum efficiency of 8.12% has been observed with 7wt% MoS₂ in the PANI matrix at 6 µm thickness, which is 2.65% higher compared to standard Pt-based CE (7.91%). This is due to high electronic conduction with the addition of MoS₂, improved catalytic activity, and the high surface area of the PANI nano-rods.

“A digital twin is a digital replica of a living or non-living physical entity, such as a manufacturing process, medical device, piece of medical equipment, and even a person to gain insight into the present and future operational states of each physical twin.” With the rapid advancement in manufacturing processes through sensors, the Internet of Things, modeling software, cloud computing, and cyber-physical integration, smart manufacturing is being adopted by almost all manufacturers. Digital twin promises the realization of smart manufacturing through the interaction and utilization of all these technological advances. Therefore, it is necessary to educate the industrialists and researchers involved in the manufacturing industry on the recent progress and directions of digital twin technology and services. In general, this work introduces the digital twin technology and presents case studies specifically for smart manufacturing from the perspective of Industry 4.0. It also presents the digital twin for smart product design, biomanufacturing, and IoT with case studies. It gives its readers a guideline for future trends and an application framework for product design using digital twins. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->

National efforts to improve air quality in the country have revitalized the interest in the development of electric vehicle technology that can be sustained for years to come. Battery-powered vehicles not only offer a diminished carbon impact on our environment but also provide an economical alternative. Considering the high prices of commercially available electric vehicles, our project is aimed at converting an already available combustion engine model into a BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle). Our project addresses all design considerations involved in this conversion and comprises of the hardware implementation as well. The project kicks off from the removal of the internal combustion engine and related assembly from a commercial vehicle (Suzuki Mehran). It then goes on to cover the design and development of EV controller, practicability of commonly used differentials, and development of EDS, if needed. After this, our efforts tend to direct towards installation of EV components and integration of accessory systems. All of this ends in implementing, testing and optimizing the designed system on the designated vehicle.

Increasing demand in product development and its automating information-processing functions to support designs and manufacturing have explored new horizons for researchers and designers to control production processes directly. The production industry has been revolutionized for better product agility and flexible manufacturing. This chapter focuses on the basic understanding of computer-aided designing (CAD), computer-aided process planning (CAPP), and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) systems concerning their definition, classification, mathematical modeling, and software implementation. The development of these systems, along with their evolution, is detailed. Integrating CAD, CAPP, and CAM systems are explored through state-of-the-art industrial examples to link the individual systems. At the end of this chapter, essential aspects of CAD, CAPP, and CAM have been detailed as well. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->