For Authors
Basic information
Acta Innovations accepts articles continuously. Within two weeks after article submission Editors should inform Authors about the preliminary acceptance of their articles for review. The text can be sent only through the system of submission of articles.
The article should include an abstract in English which fully describes the research presented within (1000 to 1500 characters), with keywords in English (up to 6).
The article should have between 20 000 and 25 000 characters. Oversized texts require prior arrangements with the Editors.
The procedure for review of articles submitted to Acta Innovations is available here.
In the first stage, the text is evaluated by the Editorial Board. Subsequently, two external reviewers are appointed.
Ghostwriting firewall
Integrity in science is one of the foundations of quality. Readers should be assured that the authors of publications present the results of their work in a transparent, fair and honest way, regardless of whether they are the direct authors, or using the support of a specialized entity (natural or legal). The highest editorial standards are proved by transparency of information on entities that contribute to the creation of publications (technical input, material, financial, etc.). This is a manifestation of not only good manners, but also social responsibility.
On contrary, "ghostwriting" and "guest authorship" are examples of breach of ethical standards in science. "Ghostwriting" is a situation when someone has made a substantial contribution to this publication, without revealing his or her participation as one of the authors or without mention of his or her role in the acknowledgments in the publication. "Guest authorship" ("honorary authorship") is a situation when the author's share is negligible or even inexistent, and yet iher or she is the author / co-author of the publication.
To prevent cases of "ghostwriting" and "guest authorship" the authors are required to disclose and notify the Editor of the contribution of individual authors in the creation of publications (with their affiliations and information on contributions from each author, i.e. who is the author of the concept, principles, methods used in the preparation of the paper). The corresponding author holds the main responsibility for providing correct information in this respect.
Authors are required to disclose information about the sources of funding of their articles as well as about the contribution of research institutions, associations and other entities ("financial disclosure").
The Editorial Board stresses that "ghostwriting" and "guest authorship" are examples of scientific misconduct. Any detected cases will be revealed, including notification of the relevant bodies (institutions employing the authors, scientific societies and associations).
The Editorial Board will document all forms of scientific misconduct, especially violations of the aforementioned rules of ethics.
Criteria for article acceptance
- The paper should be in line with the general profile of Acta Innovations.
- The title of the article should accurately reflect its contents.
- The article should contain:
a) the title in English
b) abstract and key words in English
c) appropriate captions of figures and tables
d) the correct citation and references in accordance with the rules of Acta Innovations
e) properly compiled a bibliography. - The article should be written stylistically correct language.
- The article should present the results of original research of an empirical, theoretical, technical or analytical character.
- The article should present the current state of knowledge, research methodology and research process.
- Interpretation of results and conclusions should be logical and reasonable.
How to write your article
On this page you'll find guidance and tips for first-time and experienced authors on writing style and how to structure an article. We've also included article template to help you structure and format your manuscript.
Article types
Articles commonly fall into one of four main categories: Full papers, Communications, Reviews and Opinions. However, each journal will have further, specific article types, so you should always refer to a journal’s specific author guidelines while preparing your manuscript.
Full papers are original, unpublished primary research. Extensions of work that has been published previously in short form such as a Communication are usually acceptable.
Communications must contain original and highly significant work whose high novelty warrants rapid publication. Some journals have page limits for Communications.
Reviews may be an authoritative overview of a field, a comprehensive literature reviews, or tutorial-style reference materials. Reviews are usually invited by the editor, but a topic may be proposed by an author via the editorial office.
Opinion papers must be written by the recognised authors and must address a clear and coherent vision of these authors on the area tackled in the submitted work. The opinions are usually invited by the editor, but a topic may be proposed by an author via the editorial office.
All submitted manuscripts have to be accompanied by the cover letter.
Cover letter guidance
A cover letter is an opportunity for you to promote your work to the editor and reviewers. This is a chance for you to explain the importance of the work submitted and why it is most suitable for the journal. Your cover letter will be sent to reviewers.
Your letter should include a succinct statement about the importance and/or impact of your work.
Format & layout of your article
Keep your writing clear and concise, avoiding repetition or embellishment. All submissions must be in English. We permit standard English and American spelling in our journals, but please use one or the other consistently within the article itself. You are welcome to use common or standard abbreviations; if your abbreviations are non-standard, please include a definition the first time you use them.
All articles accepted for publication in our journals are edited and typeset to our house style by professional editors: the manuscript will be formatted for you.
If you would like professional guidance on improving the standard and style of your writing, before submitting your article, we offer a specialist language editing service.
Authors are strongly encouraged to use the template
Graphical abstract
A graphical abstract is a single, concise, pictorial and visual summary of the main findings of the article. This could either be the concluding figure from the article or a figure that is specially designed for the purpose, which captures the content of the article for readers at a single glance. The graphical abstract will be displayed in the online article and any promotional materials, but will not appear in the article PDF file.
A graphical abstract should allow readers to quickly gain an understanding of the main take-home message of the paper and is intended to encourage browsing, promote interdisciplinary scholarship, and help readers identify more quickly which papers are most relevant to their research interests.
Graphical abstracts should be submitted as a separate file in the submission system.
A graphical abstract should be a one-image file and should visualize one process or make one point clear. Try to reduce distracting and cluttering elements as much as possible.
- Image size: Please provide an image with a minimum of 531 x 1328 pixels (hxw) using a minimum resolution of 300 dpi. If you are submitting a larger image then please use the same ratio (200 high x 500 wide). Please note that your image will be scaled proportionally to fit in the available window on ScienceDirect; a 500 by 200 pixel rectangle.
- Font: Please use Times, Arial, Courier or Symbol font with a large enough font size as the image will be reduced in size to fit a window of 200 pixels high.
- File type: preferred file types are TIFF, EPS, PDF or MS Office files.
- No additional text, outline or synopsis should be included. Any text or label must be part of the image file. Please do not use unnecessary white space or a heading “graphical abstract” within the image file.
Section details & bibliography
Title
The title should be short and straightforward to appeal to a general reader, but detailed enough to properly reflect the contents of the article. Think about keywords and using recognisable, searchable terms – around 70% of our readers come directly via search engines. Avoid the use of non-standard abbreviations and symbols; examples follow.
Authorship
Full names and affiliations for all the authors should be included. In case of corresponding author only professional emails are acceptable.
Everyone who made a significant contribution to the conception, design or implementation of the work should be listed as co-authors. The corresponding author has the responsibility to include all (and only) co-authors.
If there are more than 10 co-authors on the manuscript, the corresponding author should provide a statement to specify the contribution of each co-author. It is possible to have two corresponding authors. Please identify co-corresponding authors on your manuscript's first page and also mention this in your comments to the editor and/or cover letter.
Highlight
Highlight is one sentence, "elevator pitch" of your article, that helps increase the discoverability of your article via search engines. Highlight should capture the novel results of your research as well as new methods that were used during the study. Highlight offers your paper a considerable advantage in the online world, as they ensure that search engines pick up your article and match it to the right audience.
Abstract
The abstract should be concise (not exceeding 600 characters) and should summarise the content of the article. It will help readers to decide whether your article is of interest to them.
It should set out briefly and clearly the main objectives and results of the work; it should give the reader a clear idea of what has been achieved. Like your title, make sure you use recognisable, searchable terms and keywords.
Keywords
Keywords should clearly identify the content of the work. Preferentially it should be a single word however in justifiable situation multiword keywords are acceptable. Try to avoid words already used in the title. Up to 6 keywords separated by semicolons are acceptable.
Introduction
An introduction should 'set the scene' of the work. It should clearly explain both the nature of the problem under investigation and its background. It should start off general and then focus in to the specific research question you are investigating. Ensure you include all relevant references.
Method of research
The publisher believes that where possible all data associated with the research in a manuscript should be freely available in an accessible and usable format, enabling other researchers to replicate and build on that research. Standard techniques and methods used throughout the work should just be stated at the beginning of the section; descriptions of these are not needed.
Authors are encouraged to make use of electronic supplementary information (ESI) for lengthy synthetic sections. In general, there is no need to report unsuccessful experiments.
Only non-standard apparatus should be described; commercially available instruments are referred to by their stock numbers The accuracy of primary measurements should be stated.
Results & discussion
This is arguably the most important section of your article.
Your results should be organised into an orderly and logical sequence. Only the most relevant results should be described in the text; to highlight the most important points. Figures, tables, and equations should be used for purposes of clarity and brevity. Data should not be reproduced in more than one form, for example in both figures and tables, without good reason.
The purpose of the discussion is to explain the meaning of your results and why they are important. You should state the impact of your results compared with recent work and relate it back to the problem or question you posed in your introduction. Ensure claims are backed up by evidence and explain any complex arguments.
Impact
A clear information about the impact of reported work on e.g. science, economy, environment and society should be clearly demonstrated. For more information about the definition of impact please consult the scope of the journal.
Conclusions
This is for interpretation of the key results and to highlight the novelty and significance of the work. The conclusions should not summarise information already present in the article or abstract. Plans for relevant future work can also be included.
Conflicts of interest
In accordance with our policy on Conflicts of interest please ensure that a conflicts of interest statement is included in your manuscript here. Please note that this statement is required for all submitted manuscripts. If no conflicts exist, please state that ‘There are no conflicts to declare’.
Acknowledgements
Contributors (that are not included as co-authors) may be acknowledged; they should be as brief as possible. All sources of funding should be declared. If there is nothing to be declared, please state that 'This research has not been supported by any external funding'.
Footnotes
Footnotes relating to the title and/or authors, including affiliations, should appear at the very bottom of the first page of the article. If ESI is available this is also stated here.
Please also include any dedications in the footnotes.
Bibliographic references & notes
Indicate references by number(s) in square brackets in line with the text. The actual authors can be referred to, but the reference number(s) must always be given.
Example: "..... as shown elsewhere [3,6]. King et al. [8] obtained a different result ...."
List: Number the references (numbers in square brackets) in the list in the order in which they appear in the text.
Examples:
Reference to a journal publication:
[1] P. Poór, J. Basl, Processes of innovations implementation into Industry 4.0 automotive industry standards, Acta Innovations, 35 (2020) 21-28, https://doi.org/10.32933/ActaInnovations.35.2
Reference to a book:
[2] W. Strunk Jr., E.B. White, The Elements of Style, Macmillan, New York, 3rd ed., 1979.
Reference to a chapter in an edited book:
[3] G.R. Mettam, L.B. Adams, in: B.S. Jones, R.Z. Smith (Eds.), Introduction to the Electronic Age, E-Publishing, New York, 1994, p. 281.
Journal abbreviations source
Journal names should be abbreviated according to the List of Title Word Abbreviations.
Reference management software
Acta Innovations journal has the reference template available in Mendeley, the most popular reference management software product. Using citation plug-ins from these products, authors only need to select the appropriate journal template when preparing their article, after which citations and bibliographies will be automatically formatted in the journal's style. Users of Mendeley Desktop can easily install the reference style for this journal by clicking the following link:
http://open.mendeley.com/use-citation-style/biomass-and-bioenergy. When preparing your manuscript, you will then be able to select this style using the Mendeley plug-ins for Microsoft Word or LibreOffice.
Electronic supplementary information (ESI)
You can include ESI with your article to enhance and increase the impact of your work. Authors can also improve the readability of their articles by placing appropriate material in the ESI, such as repetitive experimental details or bulky data. All information published as ESI is fully archived and permanently linked to the article.
When preparing your ESI data files, you should keep in mind the following points:
- Supplementary data is peer-reviewed and should therefore be included with the original submission.
- ESI files are published 'as is'; editorial staff will not edit the data for style or content.
- Data are useful only if readers can access it; use common, widely known file formats.
- Large files may prove difficult for users to download and access.
- References cited in the ESI should be included in a separate references list within the ESI document.