Engineering journals: open calls for papers

We welcome contributions in the form of Research papers, Communications, Reviews and Perspectives on topics including, but not limited to:

• CO₂ capture materials
• CO₂ conversion catalysis with thermal, electro and/or photo activation
• Catalytic membrane reactor with product separation
• Use of CO₂ as oxidant
• Integrated CO₂ capture and conversion

Miniaturisation, automation, and integration have a profound impact across diverse fields, including biology, medicine, materials science, analytical chemistry, environmental monitoring, energy, and more, from laboratory research to industrial applications and clinical settings. Lab on a Chip is the premiere journal that publishes cutting-edge research in the field of miniaturisation. By their very nature, microfluidic/nanofluidic/miniaturized systems are at the intersection of disciplines, spanning fundamental research to high-end application, which is reflected by the broad readership of the journal. With this new Emerging Investigator Series, we want to celebrate the major up-and-coming players across this field.

This is an on-going collection - with articles being published once they are accepted and collated online, meaning that there are no strict submission deadlines. Articles published in the Series will receive extensive promotion, including a featured interview on our blog and social media platforms. Your published article will be free to access for a limited period after publication and as part of the wider Emerging Investigator collection.

This collection is led by recognised Thought Leaders in the field - David Issadore (University of Pennsylvania) and Sindy Tang (Stanford) - both of whom were featured in a previous Emerging Investigator Series.

To be eligible for the series, authors should be approximately within 10 years of completing their PhD (or equivalent), have an independent research career and be the corresponding author on their submitted manuscript. We are inclusive of any career breaks you may have had extending over this period.

The journal is led by Editor-in-Chief Aaron Wheeler (University of Toronto, Canada) and supported by a team of Associate Editors (Jean-Christophe Baret, Yoon-Kyoung Cho, Amy Herr, Xingyu Jiang, Séverine Le Gac, Hang Lu, Manabu Tokeshi, Hongkai Wu). More details about the Journal, its scope and author guidelines are available on Lab on a Chip page here.

Please note that all submitted manuscripts will be subject to initial assessment and peer review in accordance with the journal’s normal standards.

Lab on a Chip is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Organ-on-a-chip technology has rapidly gained prominence and relevance at the interface between biology and engineering due to its burgeoning potential to revolutionise biomedical research and clinical applications. These micro-engineered devices mimic the physiological functions of human organs, providing powerful microfluidic platforms for disease modelling, drug testing and therapeutics, and personalised medicine.

Submissions of interest for this Thematic Collection will significantly build upon existing models and open new avenues of research and applications by providing cutting-edge solutions to pressing problems. In recognising the multidisciplinary nature and impact of organ-on-chips, we are emphasising the collaboration between academia, industry, and clinical partners and welcome contributions that demonstrate the translation of pioneering research into practical and clinical applications for human health and disease.

Topics of next-generation interest include, but are not limited to:

• Emerging therapies beyond small drugs
• New model designs
• Digital twins and artificial intelligence (AI) integration and analysis
• Advanced sensing and measurement technologies (integrated sensors, RNA Seq, proteomics, spatial omics, multi-omics, real-time measurements, etc.)
• Bioprinting techniques
• Standardisation
• Diverse cell types (cell lines, primary cells, iPSCs, ex vivo tissues)
• Multi-organ-on-chip and body-on-chip systems

This seminal collection will showcase select next-generation papers and their investigators that look towards the future - highlighting the most forward-thinking developments in the field of organ-on-a-chip technology. Please get in touch with the Editorial Office (LOC-RSC@RSC.org) to discuss your potential contribution.

Lab on a Chip is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Achieving a sustainable future is one of the greatest challenges facing our society today which requires to be imperatively addressed. To ensure this for current and future generations, with minimal or zero net carbon emissions in matching a higher-than-ever energy demand, we must undertake a comprehensive overhaul of our energy systems.

Lab-on-a-chip systems hold opportunities in addressing this challenge through their potential to provide deep and unique understanding of the essential physical and geochemical mechanisms underlying innovative technologies that are crucial for this societal transition. Additionally, they can facilitate the development of relevant and necessary new processes and materials.

Topics of particular interest include, but are not limited to, innovations that emphasise the role of microfluidic/nanofluidic/miniaturised systems and their applications in:

• hydrogen/energy storage
• geothermal energy extraction
• bioenergy
• engineered nanoporous materials
• carbon sequestration
• critical material/mineral recovery
• water filtration and remediation

We invite research and review papers in these and related topics. Accepted articles will be published in an online collection as soon as they are accepted and will be promoted extensively.

The deadline for submission to this collection is February 1st, 2025. If you are interested in submitting a contribution, please do get in touch with the Editorial Office (LOC-RSC@RSC.org)  and we would be pleased to work together to establish an appropriate timeline.

Lab on a Chip is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Emerging Investigators should be at an early stage of their independent career (this should typically be within 12 years of attaining their doctorate or equivalent degree but appropriate consideration is given to those who have taken a career break, work in systems where their time period to independence may vary or who followed an alternative study path).

Manuscripts should be submitted via the Royal Society of Chemistry’s online submission service and the Editorial Office informed by email. Please add a “note to the editor” in the submission form when you submit your manuscript to say that this is a submission for the themed collection. The Editorial Office reserves the right to check suitability of submissions in relation to the scope of the collection and inclusion of accepted articles in the collection is not guaranteed. All manuscripts will be subject to the journal's usual peer review process. Accepted manuscripts will be added to the online collection as soon as they are online and they will be published in a regular issue of MSDE.

MSDE is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Submissions to the journal should fit within the scope of Journal of Materials Chemistry A, Journal of Materials Chemistry B, Biomaterials Science or Molecular Systems Design & Engineering and we encourage authors to select the journal they feel is best suited to their work – Please see the journal’s website for more information on the journal’s scope, standards, article types and author guidelines. All manuscripts will undergo the normal initial assessment and peer review processes, if appropriate, in line with the journal’s high standards, managed by the journal editors. Accepted manuscripts will be added to the online collection as soon as they are published and they will be featured in a regular issue of the relevant journal. Please note that peer review or acceptance are not guaranteed.

For this collection, we strongly encourage primary research in the way of Full Papers or Communications. If you are wanting to submit a review-type article, please check with the Editorial Office first for pre-approval and to avoid topic overlap.

If you would like to contribute to this themed collection, please submit your article directly through the journal submissions platform. Please mention that your submission is a contribution to the Engineering of soft materials for healthcare, energy and environment collection in the “Themed issues” section of the submission form and is in response to the Open Call. The Editorial Office reserves the right to check suitability of submissions in relation to the scope of both the journal and the collection, and as such inclusion of accepted articles in the final themed collection is not guaranteed.

If you have any questions about the collection or the submissions process, please do contact the Editorial Office at materialsb-rsc@rsc.org and they will be able to assist.

MSDE is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

The Emerging Investigators Series has an overall objective to showcase the full diversity of cutting-edge research carried out by newer voices from across the worldwide reaction engineering research community. We will consider additional applications and nominations on their own merit; please contact us if you are interested in being considered for the series or nominating an exceptional early-career colleague. 

Papers accepted for publication in the Emerging Investigators Series will be published in the earliest available issue and collated together in a dedicated Emerging Investigators page on the journal website. All submissions to the Emerging Investigators Series will be subject to the journal’s high standards in peer review. 

In order to be eligible to feature as an Emerging Investigator, contributors must: 

• Publish research within the journal scope.
• Currently be an independent research leader.
• Have not been featured as an Emerging Investigator in a previous Reaction Chemistry & Engineering Emerging Investigators Series article.
• Have either a) received their PhD no earlier than 1 January of the year 12 years prior to the year of submission, or b) have no more than 12 years of post-PhD research experience on 1 January in the year of submission when taking into account any career breaks.

Authors previously featured as Reaction Chemistry & Engineering Emerging Investigators may with no restriction be co-authors on subsequent papers in the Reaction Chemistry & Engineering Emerging Investigators Series, but they may not be the sole eligible corresponding author and will not be featured as Emerging Investigators more than once. 

Contributors will be required to confirm their eligibility by sending their CV to the journal editors.

Reaction Chemistry & Engineering is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant