1. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE JOURNAL
The ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ is the only scientific and technical publication in Ukraine with nationwide distribution, specialising in covering current issues and seeking solutions in the fields of coal chemistry, coke chemistry and related disciplines.
The aim of the journal’s editorial policy is to facilitate the publication and enhance opportunities for the dissemination and promotion of the results of scientific and industrial research among scientists and practitioners, to draw attention to promising and topical issues in the fields of coal chemistry and coke chemistry and in related fields of science and industry, to strengthen the exchange of views between the scientific communities of Ukraine and foreign countries, as well as between scientists and industrialists in these sectors.
The journal’s mission is to provide members of the academic community with equal opportunities to publish their research findings and to disseminate them freely. In doing so, we strive to give priority to the publication of articles by postgraduate students and veterans.
Currently, the ‘Coal Chemistry Journal’ is one of the few domestic scientific publications that publishes scientific articles free of charge, In addition to recipients of mandatory copies in accordance with Resolution No. 608 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 10 May 2002, copies of the ‘Coal Chemistry Journal’ are distributed free of charge to libraries and departments of domestic universities, academies, as well as educational, research and design institutes. The journal’s readership comprises scientists and engineering and technical staff in the coal, coke-chemical, metallurgical and related industries, as well as students.
2. PRINCIPLES OF THE JOURNAL’S EDITORIAL POLICY
Publications in the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ are free of charge for authors and/or their affiliated organisations.
The journal’s editorial policy is aimed at adhering to the ethical standards accepted by the international scientific community. The editorial board’s activities in this regard are based on the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), as well as on the valuable experience of authoritative international journals and publishers.
The journal’s editorial policy is based on the following principles:
- ensuring the greatest possible visibility and impact of publications;
- objectivity and impartiality in the selection of articles for publication;
- high standards regarding the quality of scientific research;
- anonymous (double-blind) peer review of articles;
- adherence to collegiality in decision-making regarding the publication of articles;
- accessibility and responsiveness in communication with authors;
- preservation of copyright and related rights.
2.1. Open Access Policy
The publication of the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ is funded by client companies on a contractual basis; however, with the aim of ensuring maximum visibility and impact for the publications, has, since 2009, provided a full-text version of each issue of the journal for publication on the ‘Scientific Periodicals of Ukraine’ electronic platform at the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, where they are made available in open access two years after print publication (Access via link).
Authors/co-authors of articles receive (free of charge) full electronic (.pdf) versions of the journal issues in which their articles are published.
Distribution of recent printed issues of the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ is carried out on a contractual basis. However, the full text of articles (up to three articles per year per person/organisation who is not an author or subscriber to the journal) is provided free of charge upon written request (by any means of post).
The editorial board and the publisher do not restrict the rights of authors to place articles published in the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ in institutional or subject-specific repositories, on personal websites, or to publish them as part of monographs, etc., as this promotes healthy, productive discussions and has a positive impact on the visibility and citation of published research. A necessary condition is a reference to the original publication in the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’.
2.2. Terms of use of copyrighted material
By submitting a proposal to the editorial board to publish their article, the author(s) consent to the transfer to the publisher of the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ (State Enterprise ‘UKHIN’) the copyright to the aforementioned article in all forms and on all media within the limits specified in this section of the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ website, namely within limits analogous to the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Thus, the author(s) permit:
- the distribution, copying and transmission of the article, including for commercial purposes;
- the modification, adaptation and editing of the article.
The publisher, in turn, undertakes to retain references to the authors in the form provided by the author(s) in accordance with the format of the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’.
We would like to emphasise once again: the publisher and the editorial board do not restrict the authors’ rights to place articles published in the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ in institutional or subject-specific repositories, on personal websites, or to publish them as part of monographs, etc., as this promotes healthy academic debate and positively influences the visibility and citation of published research. A necessary condition is a reference to the original publication in the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’.
2.3. Originality and Plagiarism
The journal publishes only original, high-quality scientific papers that are relevant to the journal’s subject area. Only articles that have not been previously published and have not been submitted for publication to another journal will be accepted for publication. If the author(s) use excerpts from other articles in their work, they must provide references to the sources or obtain permission from the previous publisher or copyright holder.
Articles in which plagiarism is detected will not be accepted for publication. If, following a review of the article, plagiarism is found, the authors will be sent a notification of rejection for the aforementioned reason.
Archived preprints are not considered plagiarism during the review of manuscripts for borrowing and copying of text and research results.
By submitting a proposal to the editorial board to publish their article, the author(s) also confirm that they agree to the terms of publication in the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ and guarantee that the article:
- has been written by them, and the scientific results presented therein have been obtained by the authors or are accompanied by references to primary sources;
- is original, is not under consideration by another journal and has not been previously published;
- does not violate any ethical standards, nor does it disclose state and/or commercial secrets;
- does not contain plagiarism or give rise to conflicts of interest;
- has been written without the use of artificial intelligence (AI), except for formatting, proofreading, translation and other technical purposes.
2.4. Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence
The policy of the ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ regarding AI is straightforward: the journal publishes only articles written by people for people. AI cannot be assigned the role of author or co-author of a scientific work, nor can it act as a reviewer or opponent. The only form of AI involvement in the writing and editing of an article is for formatting, proofreading, translation and other purely technical, auxiliary purposes. Where AI is used, authors are required to state the purpose and extent of its use.
If it is found that part of the article has been produced by artificial intelligence in terms of its scientific and/or stylistic content, the article will be rejected for publication. It should be borne in mind that a scientific journal serves, in particular, as a platform for young researchers, who must learn not only to plan and conduct research independently, but also to present the course of their research and the results obtained in a competent, convincing and logical manner.
2.5. Review Policy
Upon receipt of a submitted article, the Editor-in-Chief or the Executive Secretary forwards it for initial review to a member of the editorial board or the expert panel, which comprises leading specialists in coke chemistry, coal chemistry and other fields covered by the journal. All articles scheduled for publication in the ‘Coal Chemistry Journal’ undergo a peer-review process under conditions of mutual anonymity.
The editorial board reserves the right to unilaterally make stylistic, syntactic and punctuation corrections that do not affect the content of the submitted article, to abridge the text, and to reject manuscripts that are thematically inappropriate or improperly formatted, whilst adhering to the rules of editorial ethics.
The Editor-in-Chief, members of the editorial board and the issue editor shall not disclose to any other person’s information relating to the content of an article under consideration, except to those involved in the professional evaluation of the manuscript (reviewers).
The final decision on the publication of articles is taken collectively at a meeting of the Academic Council of the State Enterprise ‘UKHIN’. In the event of a positive decision, the date of the Academic Council meeting at which it was taken is considered the date of acceptance of the article for publication.
2.6. Conflict of interest
A conflict of interest may arise when authors, reviewers or editors have financial, commercial, legal or professional relationships with other parties involved in the editorial process.
All authors must inform the editorial board of any financial or other significant conflicts of interest that may influence the results or interpretation of their manuscripts. All sources of financial support for the project must be disclosed.
Any conflict of interest, or the absence thereof, must be declared in the cover letter.
2.7. Retraction
The editorial board reserves the right to decide to retract an article if:
- there is clear evidence that the results are unreliable, regardless of whether they are the result of misconduct (e.g. fabricated data and image manipulation);
- the research results have been previously published elsewhere and lack proper citations or justification;
- plagiarism has been detected;
- there is evidence of fraudulent authorship.
Furthermore, retractions may be initiated by authors, editors or third parties. To do so, the initiators must contact the journal’s editorial board with a letter containing a clear and comprehensible explanation of the reasons for retraction. If the initiators are the authors, such a letter must be signed by all authors of the article. The editorial board reviews the case, involving the authors if necessary. The decision on retraction is made by the journal’s editor-in-chief or their deputy.
Once a decision has been made to retract a published article, details of this will be published in the next issue of the journal with the DOI identifier.
The retracted manuscript will be completely removed from the editorial database; copyright remains with the authors of the article.
2.8. Payment
The ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ is published on a contractual basis at the request of domestic coke-chemical and other enterprises. This enables us to exempt authors and/or their institutions from paying for the costs of peer review, editing, technical formatting and other publishing requirements (Article Processing Charge / APC) when an article is published, including in Open Access format. As regards free access to the work for readers after publication, the full texts of articles become available in open access with a two-year delay via the link. In addition, authors/co-authors of articles receive (free of charge) full electronic (.pdf) layouts of the journal issues in which their articles are published. Furthermore, the full text of articles (up to three articles per year per person/organisation who is not an author or subscriber to the journal) is provided free of charge upon written request (by any means of post). Thus, the editorial board, albeit with some restrictions regarding timeframes, practises open access (free of charge for both the author and the user) for all articles and issues of the scientific journal.
2.9. Policy on research involving humans, animals or their biological materials, personal or confidential data
The ‘Journal of Coal Chemistry’ publishes, among other things, articles relating to the impact of industrial processes on the environment, humans, the biosphere, etc.
In this regard, if an article concerns research involving humans, animals, biological materials or confidential data, it is necessary to ensure the protection of the rights, safety and confidentiality of participants, as well as the compliance of the research with bioethical standards. In such cases, authors are required to submit to the editorial board, together with the cover letter and the text of the article, evidence of the participants’ informed consent to the publication of confidential data and/or a positive opinion from a local or national ethics committee – in particular regarding compliance with the principles of humane treatment of animals.
In the absence of the aforementioned evidence and/or conclusions, the editorial board will require the authors to remove from the article any information that may violate the relevant rights of participants or standards of bioethics.
Should the authors refuse or fail to respond within one week of the request, the article will be rejected.
The situation will be brought to the attention of the relevant state authorities to ascertain whether the research conducted complies with current Ukrainian legislation.