School of Interdisciplinary Engineering & Sciences

Intelligent Digital Twin Lab

Welcome to the Intelligent Digital Twin Lab, where Industry 4.0 technologies are at the forefront of innovation. Our lab is dedicated to transforming industrial energy management and operational efficiency through the integration of IoT, digital twin technologies, and advanced data analytics. We specialize in creating digital twin models for industrial energy, emissions, and quality monitoring systems. Utilizing cutting-edge tools and expertise, we focus on optimizing industrial processes, detecting energy losses, and improving overall performance. Our work includes the integration of intelligent energy monitoring and management systems in process units, along with predictive maintenance and process optimization solutions tailored for manufacturing, refinery, and energy-intensive industries. Through our research, we make groundbreaking contributions to automation, sustainability, and the future of industrial operations.

PI’s Profile

Dr. Iftikhar Ahmad Salarzai works on virtual sensing, uncertainty quantification, reliability analysis, and automation of process energy management systems (EnMS). He is the founder and CEO of E-Triangle Automation Company. He holds an MS and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Kyoto University, Japan. He developed an intelligent fault diagnosis system with Kansai Electrical Safety and Inspection Association to quickly restore electricity during supply line breakdowns. 

Additionally, with Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC), he developed a gray-box model-based framework for temperature estimation and control in the continuous casting process under uncertainty. He has also successfully applied his core research themes to other industries such as petroleum refining, shale oil and gas processing, cement production, coal gasification, and biofuel production units in Pakistan. Dr. Iftikhar has received the Outstanding Research Award from the Society of Chemical Engineers, Japan, the ORIC Innovation Award from the University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar, Pakistan, and is the winner of the Cleantech Innovation Challenge 2024.

Dr. Mian Ilyas Ahmad is an active researcher in model order reduction, digital twins, and nonlinear dynamics, and serves as Professor of Scientific Computing at NUST. He completed his PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from Imperial College London, UK in 2011 and joined NUST as an Assistant Professor in Jan. 2012.

He expanded his research exposure through a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at the Max Planck Institute for Complex Technical Systems, Magdeburg, Germany in the area of Computational Methods for Control. After resuming his faculty position at NUST, he became Associate Professor in 2019 and Professor and Head of Engineering Department at the School of Interdisciplinary Engineering & Sciences in 2022. As PI of the NUST Intelligent Digital Twin Lab for Industrial Applications, Dr. Ahmad works on real time modeling frameworks, scalable digital twin architectures, and industrial process optimization. His contributions support advanced monitoring, control, and predictive analytics for complex engineering systems across multiple industrial sectors.

Lab Equipment/Resources:

  • DIGI Temp- High-Range Molten Steel Temperature Sensors
  • Artillery SideWinder- 3D Printer with Customized Settings and Efficiency
  • Energy Analyzers for Monitoring Electric Parameters
  • IoT modules for Data Collection
  • IOT Kit
  • Amazon Web Services (USD 25,000 Credits) for Cloud Computing
  • Aspen Plus and MATLAB for Modeling and Simulation
  • SolidWorks – CAD/CAM
  • Altium Designer – PCB
  • Cura – 3D Printing Software
  • Tools and Equipment for Wiring

Expertise/Capablities of Lab:

  • Digital Twin Technologies for Industrial Energy, Emissions, and Quality Monitoring and Management Systems
  • Surrogate Modeling for Uncertainty Quantification, Sensitivity Analysis, and Reliability Analysis of Industrial Operations
  • IoT Sensing, Cloud Computing, and Big Data Analytics
  • Integration of Intelligent Energy Monitoring and Management Systems in process units
  • Predictive Maintenance and Process Optimization

Projects:

  1. Formation of E-Triangle Automation Company (2022):
    A university spinoff focused on digital twin technologies for energy monitoring and management systems in manufacturing plants.
  2. Dynea Pakistan Limited, Pakistan (2024):
    Implementation of EnergEyer (Intelligent Energy Management System) in the formaldehyde plant at Dynea Pakistan Gadoon Unit.
  3. Fazal Steel Limited (FSL), Pakistan (2021):
    Integration of EnergEyer at the MAT CAST Plant. The project was reported in national media: https://islamabadpost.com.pk/steel-industry-adopts-advanced-intelligent-energy-monitoring-and-management-system/
  4. Attock Refinery Limited (ARL), Pakistan (2015-Present):
    Plant-Wide Energy Analysis of Petroleum Refinery Process with an integrated framework of exergy analysis, uncertainty analysis, and process optimization.
  5. Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation, Japan (2011-2014):
    Project: Development of a gray-box model for stable and efficient operation of the steelmaking process.
  6. Kansai Electrical Safety and Inspection Association, Japan (2009-2013):
    Fault diagnosis modeling for power cable systems.
  7. Master Tiles and Ceramic Industries, Pakistan (2007-2008):
     Characterization of ceramic wall tiles using local talc as a fluxing agent.

Human Rersource:

Typical Enrollment of lab researchers: 10-14 MS/PhD researchers

Contact Us:

Dr. Iftikhar Ahmad
Contact No.: 5190855108
Email: [email protected]

Dr. Mian Ilyas Ahmad,
Contact No.:051-90855745
Email: [email protected]