BITUMEN is committed to maintaining the highest editorial standards in peer review, publication ethics, and transparency. Our editorial policies ensure a fair, rigorous, and ethical publication process.
1. Editorial Independence
- The editorial board operates independently, ensuring that all editorial decisions are made based on the quality, originality, and relevance of the submitted work.
- Decisions are not influenced by external factors such as funding sources, institutional affiliations, or personal relationships.
2. Peer Review Process
- All submitted manuscripts undergo a double-blind peer review, where the identities of both reviewers and authors remain anonymous.
- At least two independent reviewers assess each submission for accuracy, originality, and significance.
- The editor-in-chief makes the final decision based on reviewer feedback.
3. Responsibilities of the Editorial Board
- Ensure that all manuscripts meet ethical, technical, and academic standards.
- Provide constructive feedback to authors to improve the quality of submissions.
- Address ethical concerns, including conflicts of interest, plagiarism, and research misconduct.
- Maintain transparency and confidentiality in the peer review and editorial process.
4. Ethical Publishing Practices
- The journal follows COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines for handling ethical issues.
- All research involving human or animal subjects must have ethical approval from the relevant institutions.
- Editors ensure that submissions comply with plagiarism and data integrity standards.
5. Conflict of Interest
- Editors and reviewers must declare any potential conflicts of interest before handling a manuscript.
- If a conflict of interest is identified, the manuscript will be reassigned to an independent editor.
6. Retraction and Corrections Policy
- Articles may be retracted in cases of plagiarism, data fabrication, or ethical violations.
- Corrections (errata) will be issued for minor errors that do not affect the scientific integrity of the research.
7. Confidentiality and Data Protection
- Editors and reviewers must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone outside the peer review process.
- Author and reviewer identities are protected throughout the editorial workflow.
8. Appeals and Complaints
- Authors have the right to appeal editorial decisions by submitting a formal request with justifications.
- Complaints about the editorial process, ethical concerns, or conflicts of interest will be reviewed by the editorial board and resolved accordingly.
For any editorial inquiries, please contact editorbitumen@gmail.com.