Conflict of Interest
United Journal of Chemistry (UJC) defines a conflict of interest (COI) as any relationship or circumstance involving authors, reviewers, or editors that could interfere with the impartial presentation of research, the peer-review process, editorial decision-making, or the publication of a manuscript.
Conflicts of interest may be financial or non-financial, professional or personal, and may arise in connection with either an organization or an individual. UJC requires authors to provide full disclosure of all conflicts of interest related to a submitted manuscript, as transparency is essential to maintaining the integrity of scholarly communication.
Reviewers
To maintain an unbiased and fair review process:
- Editors must appoint an alternative or guest editor when they have a conflict of interest with an author or manuscript.
- Editors are responsible for ensuring that selected reviewers have no conflicts of interest in relation to the authors or the work under review.
- Reviewers must inform the editorial office of any potential conflicts of interest before agreeing to review a manuscript. Examples include recent collaboration with an author, working in the same institution, or any circumstance that may prevent an objective evaluation of the work.
- Minor conflicts may not automatically disqualify a reviewer; however, such situations will be considered when assessing the reviewer’s recommendations.
Authors
All authors and co-authors must disclose any potential conflicts of interest at the time of manuscript submission. These may include, but are not limited to:
- Employment relationships
- Consultancy or advisory roles
- Research funding or contractual agreements
- Stock ownership or equity interests
- Patent applications or licenses
- Honoraria or paid affiliations
If the manuscript is accepted for publication, the disclosed information must be included in the appropriate section of the final published article.
Editors
Editors must refrain from participating in editorial decisions or handling manuscripts in which they have any conflict of interest, whether financial or non-financial. If a conflict exists in relation to the authors or the subject matter, the editor must withdraw from the editorial process for that manuscript.
A conflict may arise, for example, when a submission originates from the editor’s own department or institution. In such cases, clear procedures must be followed to ensure independent handling of the manuscript.
When editors submit their own work to United Journal of Chemistry, the manuscript must be managed by another qualified member of the editorial team. The submitting editor must not be involved in discussions or decisions regarding their submission.
Journal Policy on Disclosure
All financial and non-financial competing interests must be declared by the authors in the section provided within the copyright or disclosure form.
If no conflicts of interest exist, authors must include the following statement:
“The author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this article.”
If conflicts are present, full details must be clearly stated at the end of the manuscript.