GUIDE FOR AUTHORS

PURPOSE
This Author's Guide details all the necessary steps for submitting manuscripts to the Journal of Chemical Engineering and Industrial Biotechnology (JCEIB), published by UMPSA Press at Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah. It covers manuscript formatting, declaration requirements, reference standards, production processes, and post-acceptance responsibilities. Authors are advised to review this guide thoroughly before preparing their submissions and to ensure they adhere to all criteria before submitting through the online editorial system. This guide aligns strictly with the publication ethics and best-practice standards established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). It covers content transparency, journal evaluation criteria, principles of open-access scholarly publications, authorship, and reporting standards. Following this guide is mandatory for both submission and publication.

AUTHOR GUIDELINES
The authors are invited to submit their manuscripts using the journal’s online manuscript submission system (https://journal.ump.edu.my/jceib/submission). The JCEIB paper template can be reached HERE. Authors are encouraged to use and edit the template, rather than developing their own file.
1. Manuscript Published
The journal publishes the following types of manuscripts:

1.1 Full Research Articles
Research articles report new, significant findings from original studies within the journal's scope. They must clearly communicate the research's importance, originality, and rigorous methodology. All necessary experimental or computational details for replication should be included in the main text. Supplementary materials can provide additional procedures and data but should not replace key methodological descriptions. There is no strict length limit, but articles typically range from 5,000 to 12,000 words, excluding abstract, tables, figures, and references, and should cite at least 20 references.

1.2 Review Articles
Review articles provide a clear, balanced, and comprehensive synthesis of a specific research area aligned with the journal's scope, highlighting recent advances, key challenges, and future research directions. Unsolicited review submissions are welcomed; authors unsure about their review topic's suitability can submit a brief proposal to the editorial office for evaluation before completing the full manuscript. Typically, review articles range from 5,000 to 15,000 words, excluding the abstract, tables, figures, and references, and usually include at least 70 citations.

1.3 Case Reports
Case reports highlight a unique case that presents a significant diagnostic, analytical, or engineering challenge, offering valuable learning points for readers. Priority is given to cases with clear academic or practical importance. These reports usually range from 3,500 to 9,500 words, excluding the abstract, tables, and figures, and include at least 40 references.

2. Submission Process and Requirements
2.1 Online Submission 
All manuscripts must be submitted solely by the corresponding author through the JCEIB online editorial management system at https://journal.ump.edu.my/jceib. The corresponding author is the primary point of contact between the author group and the editorial office throughout submission, review, revision, and production. It must ensure that all co-authors have read, approved, and agreed to the submission. By submitting, the corresponding author confirms on behalf of all authors that the work is original, not published elsewhere except as a preprint or conference proceeding disclosed at submission, and not under review by another journal. Submitting to multiple journals at once is considered a duplicate submission and will be regarded as misconduct under the JCEIB Misconduct Handling Policy.

2.2 Mandatory Submission Components
All required components must be included in the submission (refer to Section 3.2). Manuscripts missing any mandatory parts will be returned to the corresponding author before the start of the editorial review.
Main manuscript file: The full document is formatted using the JCEIB Author Template and contains all sections, figures, tables, equations, and references in a single editable Word file.
Author contribution statement: A completed CRediT Author Contribution Statement details each author's specific contributions according to the fourteen standardised CRediT roles outlined in Section 4.3. All listed authors must approve this statement before submission.
Funding disclosure: Provide a complete list of all funding sources and grant numbers supporting the research, or a clear statement confirming no funding was received, in accordance with Section 7.1.
Competing interest’s declaration: A comprehensive statement of all financial and non-financial competing interests for each listed author, or a confirmation that none exist, formatted in line with Section 7.2.
Data Availability Statement: This section clarifies where the data supporting the article's findings can be accessed or provides a clear reason why the data cannot be shared, following the format outlined in Section 7.4.
Ethics Statement: For research involving human participants, animal subjects, or sensitive personal data, specify the name of the ethics review board, its approval reference number, and affirm that the research adhered to the approved protocol. Refer to Section 7.5 for detailed requirements and sample statements.
AI Use Disclosure: If you used any generative AI tool in preparing the manuscript, specify the tool's name, version, and how and to what extent it was used, following the guidelines in Section 7.6. If no AI tools were employed, a clear statement indicating that must be included.
Preprint Disclosure: If a preprint version of the manuscript is posted on a recognised preprint server, the server's name and the permanent URL or DOI must be provided. Disclosing a preprint does not exclude the manuscript from review.

2.3 Cover Letter
Authors must submit a cover letter addressed to the Editor-in-Chief. This letter should confirm that the manuscript is original, unpublished, and not under review elsewhere. It must briefly highlight the work's significance, originality, and relevance to JCEIB's scope. Authors should specify the manuscript type (research article, review, or case report), disclose any preprint postings, and confirm that all co-authors have approved the submission. The cover letter can also include up to three suggested peer reviewers with full contact details and brief expertise statements, as well as up to two individuals they wish to exclude from the review, with written justification. All reviewer suggestions are subject to the independence criteria set by the Editor-in-Chief, and the editorial team is not obligated to accept them.

3. Manuscript Preparation and Formatting
3.1 General Formatting Requirements
All manuscripts should be prepared using the JCEIB Author Template, which can be downloaded from here. Authors are strongly encouraged to work directly within this template rather than creating a separate, formatted file, as it contains the correct margin settings, heading styles, font specifications, and section structure. Manuscripts must be formatted on A4 paper (210 × 297 mm) with 20 mm margins on all sides. The main text should be in Times New Roman, 10-point, single-spaced, in a single-column layout with justified margins on both sides. Greek characters must be formatted using the 'Symbol' font. All pages should be numbered sequentially in the footer to assist with editorial review and production processes.

3.2 Manuscript Structure
All manuscripts must include the following sections in the order specified. Mandatory sections are indicated; optional sections are noted where applicable.

3.3 Title
The manuscript title should be clear, concise, and specific enough to accurately reflect the research's core focus for an international readership. Titles must be formatted in 14-point Times New Roman, using sentence case; only the first word, the first word of any subtitle, and proper nouns should be capitalised. The title should be between 9 and 20 words long to be both descriptive and concise. Avoid including mathematical and chemical formulas, jargon, or non-standard abbreviations unless they are well-known acronyms in the field. Incorporating key keywords related to methodology and topics can enhance indexing, so authors are advised to include these essential terms in the title.

3.4 Author Information and Affiliations
Authors must provide their full given and family names, consistently formatted across the manuscript and online submission system. The author order in the manuscript must precisely match the order entered the editorial management system. ORCID IDs are strongly encouraged for all authors and required for the corresponding author; registration is free at https://orcid.org. Author affiliations should be listed directly below their names, with each author linked to their specific institution using a superscript lowercase letter (e.g., ᵃ, ᵇ) or number (e.g., ¹, ²). Each affiliation must include the full institution name, department, city, postcode, and country. For authors with multiple affiliations, each should be indicated with a separate superscript marker.
The corresponding author should be indicated with an asterisk (*) right after their name. Their contact information, such as institutional postal address, email, and phone number, must be provided below the affiliation section. This author manages all communications with the editorial office, from submission to post-publication follow-up, and should keep their contact details up to date throughout. If the corresponding author changes institutions after submission, they must notify the editorial office immediately and, if needed, designate a new corresponding author.

3.5 Abstract
Each manuscript must include a self-contained abstract limited to 250 words. Since the abstract is indexed and displayed separately from the main article, it should clearly present the purpose, methodology, key findings, conclusions, and significance, without referencing external figures, tables, or abbreviations. It should highlight the research problem's importance and the study’s primary goal, provide enough detail on the methodology and materials for the reader to evaluate the study design, and summarise the most important results, including relevant quantitative data. The abstract should also state the main conclusions and discuss the broader impact or implications. Any new contributions or significant limitations affecting interpretation should be noted. Avoid obscure abbreviations; if needed, define them when first used. The abstract must be formatted in 9-point Times New Roman font, with no indentation.

3.6 Keywords
Authors should select three to six keywords that accurately reflect the main topics, methods, and discipline of their manuscript. These keywords are crucial for discovery; well-chosen keywords increase the article's visibility, readership, and citation chances. All keywords must be in English and use recognised terminology specific to the relevant subfield. Avoid using compound keywords connected by conjunctions or prepositions, such as 'heat transfer and fluid mechanics,' because search tools perform better with clear, individual terms. Limit keyword abbreviations to those widely accepted in the discipline, as unfamiliar abbreviations can reduce search engine performance.

3.7 Section Headings and Sub-headings
Section headings must be numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals, starting with the Introduction as Section 1. All primary headings should be left-aligned, formatted in the JCEIB Heading 1 style, and capitalised in title case. Secondary headings (second level) should be numbered with two digits (e.g., 2.1, 2.2), formatted in the JCEIB Heading 2 style, with the first letter capitalised (title case). Tertiary headings (third level) are numbered with three digits (e.g., 2.1.1), formatted in sentence case, and italicised. Avoid headings beyond the third level whenever possible.

4. Authorship Standards and CRediT Contribution Statement
4.1 ICMJE Authorship Eligibility Criteria
JCEIB adopts the four-criterion authorship standard of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), applied cumulatively. Every named author must satisfy all four criteria independently. The criteria are as follows.
Criterion 1
Intellectual contribution: The author made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, or acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of research data. Purely technical, administrative, or logistical tasks—such as operating instruments under guidance, maintaining equipment, or providing research access- do not qualify for this criterion unless the person also exercised independent intellectual judgment in designing or analysing the work.
Criterion 2
Drafting or Critical Revision: The author either created the initial draft of the manuscript or made meaningful scholarly revisions to enhance its intellectual quality. Critical revision goes beyond simple grammar or typo corrections, focusing on substantially improving the manuscript's arguments, analysis, or conclusions.
Criterion 3
Final approval: The author provided explicit, documented consent for the submitted version to JCEIB. General prior agreement does not meet this requirement.
Criterion 4
Accountability: The author agrees to take responsibility for all aspects of the work, including their specific contributions and the overall integrity. They commit to addressing any questions about the accuracy or integrity by conducting proper investigations and resolving issues.
 Individuals who contributed to the research but do not satisfy all four ICMJE criteria, such as those offering funding, research infrastructure, data access, technical support, general supervision without specific intellectual input, or language editing, should not be listed as authors. Instead, their contributions must be recognised by name and explanation in the Acknowledgements section. Honest reporting of authorship is an ethical responsibility; intentionally omitting contributions constitutes misconduct and will be addressed in accordance with the JCEIB Misconduct Handling Policy.

4.2 Authorship List Finalisation and Changes
The complete and final authorship list, including all named authors in their final sequence, must be established at the time of initial submission, with all authors’ information recorded consistently in both the manuscript file and the online submission system. The sequence of authors in the manuscript must exactly match the sequence entered in the editorial management system, as any discrepancy may cause indexing errors that are extremely difficult to correct after publication.
 Any change to the author list after submission, such as adding, removing, or rearranging authors, must be officially communicated in writing by the corresponding author. This notification should include a clear, evidence-based explanation for the proposed change. Additionally, written consent from all authors involved at the time of the change, including any newly added or removed individuals, is required. The Editor-in-Chief must also assess and approve the request independently. Post-acceptance authorship changes are considered only in rare cases and may delay publication. If approved after publication, changes are publicly announced via a corrigendum. Unauthorised alterations at any stage, before or after publication, are serious ethical violations and may lead to manuscript rejection or retraction.

4.3 CRediT Author Contribution Statement
JCEIB requires all manuscripts to include a CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) Author Contribution Statement, which must be completed using the fourteen standardised NISO CRediT roles. The CRediT statement supplements and does not replace the ICMJE eligibility criteria; every named author must satisfy all four ICMJE criteria, and the CRediT statement describes the specific nature of each qualifying author's contribution. The statement is published in the article above the Acknowledgements section and is submitted as structured metadata to support accurate bibliometric attribution.
 The corresponding author is responsible for completing the CRediT statement in consultation with all co-authors and for ensuring that all authors agree on the accuracy of the role assignments before submission. Role assignments must accurately reflect the actual contributions made; inflated, fabricated, or incorrect role assignments constitute a form of authorship misrepresentation and will be treated as misconduct.

4.3.1 The CRediT contributor roles
Each of the fourteen CRediT roles is defined below. Every named author's contribution statement must reference only those roles they genuinely performed. A single author may be assigned multiple roles; a single role may be assigned to multiple authors; not all roles will be applicable in every manuscript. Roles not applicable to a specific manuscript are omitted from the statement; their absence does not require explanation.

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4.3.2 CRediT statement formatting
The CRediT statement must be formatted with each author's initials and surname listed first, followed by the applicable CRediT role or roles in parentheses, separated by semicolons. All roles must use the exact standardised terminology listed in Section 4.3.1; do not paraphrase or substitute alternative descriptions. The complete statement must cover all named authors; any author whose role is not listed will be queried by the editorial office before the manuscript proceeds.

5. Article Components
5.1 Introduction 
The introduction must provide the research background and broader context necessary for readers across the journal's international readership to understand the significance of the work, identify the gap in existing knowledge that the study addresses, and understand why the work is of interest. A brief but focused literature review situating the work within the current state of the art is required; a comprehensive survey of the full field history is not appropriate for the introduction and should be reserved for dedicated review articles. The introduction should not summarise the results or conclusions of the work, which must appear in their designated sections. The research objectives must be stated explicitly and concisely at the close of the introduction.

5.2 Literature Review
The literature review is essential for review articles submitted to JCEIB. It situates the work within current knowledge, identifies gaps, and shows the authors’ expertise. A strong review underpins the originality and is key to credibility. It can be part of the Introduction or a standalone section, depending on the depth. Review articles focus on this section. The review must be current, thorough, and critical, engaging recent literature from the past 3-5 years unless historical context is needed. It should describe and evaluate key findings, theories, and contradictions, ending with a clear identification of the addressed gap and its significance. Avoid descriptive, cherry-picked, or scope-limited reviews, as well as unsupported claims.

5.3 Materials and Methods
The materials and methods section must provide sufficient detail to enable an independent researcher with relevant expertise to replicate the work. This reproducibility requirement, mandated by COPE, serves as an editorial quality standard. If methods have been previously published, they can be referenced rather than fully described; only key modifications to established methods need to be detailed. For experimental procedures, specify materials, instruments, reagents, experimental conditions, control procedures, and measurement uncertainty with adequate precision. For computational work, include all governing equations, boundary and initial conditions, numerical methods, convergence criteria, and software information, including version numbers. Clearly identify and justify all statistical methods used.

5.4 Results and Discussion
Results and discussion can be presented either as a combined section, based on what best enhances clarity. Results should be clear and precise, including measures of uncertainty, statistical significance, and replication. The discussion should place the findings in the context of the existing literature, highlight their importance, address any discrepancies or unexpected results, and note any limitations that affect the scope or generalisability. Avoid excessive citation and re-description of previous work; instead, focus on interpreting and contextualising the new findings.

5.5 Conclusions
The conclusions section should provide a clear, focused summary of the main findings and their significance. It must directly address the goals set out in the introduction, reaffirm the study's proven points, and emphasise the practical and theoretical implications of the results. Instead of just repeating the abstract or listing the results, it should synthesise and interpret the findings in relation to the objectives and the broader field. Authors may also highlight unresolved questions or propose future research directions based on the limitations or scope of the current study.

6. Figures, Tables, Equations, and Supplementary Material
6.1 Figures
All figures should be self-explanatory and submitted in one of these formats: PNG, EPS, TIFF, JPEG, or BMP. Grayscale images need at least 600 dpi resolution; colour images require at least 300 dpi. In the manuscript, all figures must be explicitly cited and numbered in the order they appear using Arabic numerals (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2). Multi-panel figures should clearly label each part (e.g., Figure 1(a), Figure 1(b)). Each figure requires a brief, descriptive caption placed directly below it, formatted in sentence case without a period at the end, with 6-point spacing before and after. Figures should not duplicate data shown in tables. Colour figures will be published online; authors should also ensure that figures are understandable in grayscale for print (if applicable). Ensure no boundary lines are visible on any figure. Only the plot area and legend should be within the plot boundaries. The figure must be clear, and all text must be legible.

6.2 Tables
All tables should be submitted as editable text using standard word-processing software; avoid pasting tables as image files. Each table must have a brief, highly descriptive caption placed directly above it, formatted in sentence case with 6-point spacing both above and below. Tables should be fully self-explanatory and numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals (e.g., Table 1, Table 2) in the order they are first cited in the text. Footnotes directly under the table body are suitable for defining non-standard abbreviations or indicating statistical significance, but not for describing experimental procedures or methods, which should be included in the Materials and Methods section. To adhere to professional typographic standards, avoid vertical rules and cell shading. Place table legends and headers after the main text, each on a separate page.

6.3 Mathematical Equations and Formulae
All mathematical equations should be submitted as fully editable text using Microsoft Word's Equation Editor or MathType; do not submit equations as image files. For simple fractional expressions within running text, use a solidus (e.g., X/Y) instead of a stacked fraction to ensure consistent line spacing. All variables must be italicised; vectors and matrices should be in bold; standard functions like log, sin, and exp must e in Roman (non-italic) type. Powers of e should be represented as 'exp' for clarity. Complex or multi-line equations cited in the text must be displayed on separate lines, numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals in parentheses aligned to the right, corresponding to their citation order. Equations in appendices follow a different numbering system, with the appendix letter as a prefix (e.g., Eq. A(1), Eqs. A(2-3)).

6.4 Research Highlights (Optional)
Authors are encouraged to submit research highlights that offer a quick summary of the manuscript's most important and novel points. These highlights should include up to five short bullet points, each no longer than 100 characters, covering the key innovations, unique results, and new methods. They must be uploaded separately as a document named 'Highlights' via the online system and not included in the main manuscript. Including highlights enhances search engine visibility and helps the article be found more easily in global academic databases.

6.5 Graphical Abstract (Optional)
A graphical abstract, a single, professional, visually appealing image summarising the article's main findings, is recommended for all types of manuscripts. It should be designed to attract an interdisciplinary audience and convey the core contribution quickly. The graphical abstract must be submitted as a separate high-resolution image file (TIFF, EPS, or JPEG, at least 300 dpi) through the online system; it should not be embedded in the main manuscript. If generative AI or AI-assisted tools are used to create it, this must be disclosed per Section 7.6. The corresponding author is responsible for obtaining permission for any third-party material included in the graphical abstract.

6.6 Abbreviations and Units
All abbreviations should be defined when first introduced in the main text. A list of abbreviations may also be included at the end of the manuscript, after the references. Abbreviations in the abstract must be explained within the abstract itself, even if they are defined in the main text. Authors are highly encouraged to use SI (Système International) units throughout the document. If other unit systems are used for disciplinary standards or to align with cited literature, the SI equivalent must also be provided.

6.7 Supplementary Material
Supplementary material may consist of relevant data, extended datasets, video files, code, or other supporting information that could disrupt the flow of the main text if included but is essential for completeness or reproducibility. All supplementary files must be ready for publication, as they are published exactly as provided, without editorial changes. Previously published supplementary material is not allowed. Each supplementary item must be cited in the main text (e.g.: S1 for supplementary info 1) and listed under 'Supporting Information' with a clear, descriptive title. Once published, supplementary material is permanently linked to the article and cannot be altered.

7. Declarations
All manuscripts submitted to JCEIB must include a Declaration section placed after the Conclusions and before the References. This section consolidates all mandatory disclosure and compliance statements into a single, clearly structured section of the manuscript, consistent with COPE's transparency requirements. Each sub-declaration has its own sub-heading, as specified below. The Declarations section is published in the article and submitted as structured metadata to all applicable indexing databases.

7.1 Acknowledgements
The Acknowledgements section should list all individuals who helped with the research or manuscript but do not meet the ICMJE authorship criteria. Contributions must be specified by name and type, such as statistical advice, lab support, or language editing. Every individual’s acknowledgement must be confirmed by them before submission. Funding sources are not to be included here but should be reported in the separate Funding subsection (Refer to Section 7.2). Any institutional contributions must also be acknowledged in this section. 

7.2 Funding
Authors are required to fully and transparently disclose all sources of financial and material support that aided the research and manuscript creation. Providing comprehensive funding disclosures enables peer reviewers, editors, and readers to assess potential external influences on the study's design, data collection, analysis, or interpretation, aligning with transparency standards for competing interests. Disclosures must include all external support sources, regardless of type: direct monetary grants from federal, state, foundation, or institutional sources; fellowships; assistance with publication or article processing fees; in-kind contributions such as equipment, proprietary materials, reagents, biological samples, restricted computing resources, or specialized data analysis tools; research-related salaries paid by external organizations; and travel or accommodation expenses covered by external entities.
The funding section should be titled 'Funding' and include the full official names of each funding agency along with their specific grant or award numbers. All funding details mentioned in the manuscript must also be accurately entered into the funding metadata fields [sa2] of the online submission system. This ensures the information is added to the article's CrossMark r[sa3] ecord and submitted to international funding registries. The corresponding author bears full responsibility for ensuring all funding disclosures are accurate, complete, and consistent among all co-authors before submission.

7.3 Declaration of Competing Interests
A competing interest includes any financial, professional, personal, or institutional connection or condition that might influence the research's design, conduct, or reporting. Declaring a competing interest does not suggest bias or unethical behaviour; rather, it is a crucial part of transparent scholarly publishing, enabling readers to make informed judgments about potential influences. Authors should disclose all relevant interests from the three years prior to starting the research and writing. Interests beyond this period should also be declared if they may still be perceived as biases.
Financial competing interests that require disclosure include employment with organisations that have a financial stake in the research outcome; stock ownership or options in such organisations; consultation fees; speaking honoraria; paid expert testimony; royalties; and patents whose value could be influenced by the publication of the findings. Non-financial competing interests include unpaid leadership roles in relevant organisations, personal or professional relationships that may affect the work, and strongly held personal beliefs related to the manuscript's subject. These obligations also apply to the authors' immediate family members. Authors with editorial or advisory roles at JCEIB must inform the editorial office before submitting and include a recusal statement in the Declaration of Competing Interests, confirming they are fully detached from the manuscript's peer review process.

7.4 Data Availability Statement
Authors must provide a clear and specific statement describing the accessibility of the data, materials, and code used in or generated by the study. Open data sharing is strongly encouraged and consistent with JCEIB's commitment to transparency and reproducibility, as well as open science principles, which require data to be deposited in an open repository. The statement must provide the repository name and the persistent identifier (DOI or permanent URL) of the deposited dataset. Where data are available on reasonable request, the statement must identify the contact person responsible for responding to requests. Where data cannot be shared, the statement must provide a specific, substantiated explanation. Generic statements that data are 'available on request' without a named contact are not acceptable. The Data Availability Statement is published in the article and included in article-level metadata submitted to Scopus, WoS, and CrossRef.

7.5 Ethics Declaration
An ethics statement is required for all research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive personal data. For research with human participants, the corresponding author must provide the full name of the ethics committee or internal review board (IRB) that approved the study, the approval reference number, the approval date, and confirm that the research followed the approved protocol and the Declaration of Helsinki (2013 revision) or the relevant national guidelines. For studies involving animals, the statement must verify adherence to applicable animal welfare laws and institutional policies, including the name and approval number of the approving committee and the approval date. For research with personal data, the statement must confirm compliance with the Malaysian Personal Data Protection Act 2010 and other relevant international privacy laws. If ethics review was waived, such as for publicly available secondary data or anonymised records, the basis for this waiver must be clearly stated. The Editor-in-Chief may request copies of ethics approval documents at any point during the review process.

7.6 Generative Artificial Intelligence Disclosure
Authors need to disclose any use of generative AI tools, such as large language models, AI writing assistants, AI image generators, and AI-assisted data analysis tools, when preparing their manuscript. The disclosure should include the tool's name, version, and details of its use. Authors are responsible for ensuring the accuracy, originality, and integrity of all AI-assisted content; AI tools cannot be listed as authors and do not meet the four ICMJE authorship criteria. If AI tools were used for language editing, grammar, or translation, this must be clearly stated. Using AI-generated text, figures, code, or references without disclosure constitutes a breach of JCEIB publication ethics and will be handled as misconduct under the JCEIB Misconduct Handling Policy. If no AI tools were used, authors must state this explicitly.

8. References and Citation Style
8.1 General Principles
All manuscripts submitted to JCEIB must format their reference lists exclusively according to the Vancouver reference style, as specified in the “Vancouver Style Guide” (Refer to Section 8.3). Vancouver Style uses a numbered citation system: each source is assigned a sequential number at the point of its first citation in the text, and that number is used consistently throughout the manuscript wherever the same source is cited again. Reference numbers must be enclosed in square brackets and placed before any terminal punctuation (e.g., '[1].' not '.[1]'). Multiple citations at a single location are listed within one pair of square brackets, separated by commas (e.g., [1,3],7]); two or more consecutive citations may be expressed as a range using an end-dash (e.g., [2–5]). Reference citations must not appear in the manuscript title, section headings, or abstract. Complete and accurate references are essential not only for scholarly integrity but for the accuracy of metadata records, all of which use automated reference parsing to build citation networks. Reference errors, including incorrect author initials, inaccurate page numbers, wrong volume or issue numbers, missing DOIs, or truncated journal names, propagate directly into these database records and cannot be corrected after publication without a formal corrigendum. Authors are responsible for verifying every reference detail against the original source before submission. References to retracted articles must not be included in the reference list unless the citation is specifically for the purpose of discussing the retraction.

8.2 Author Names and Reference Formatting Rules
All authors should be listed using the format Surname Initial(s) (e.g., Ali A, Tan B), the full journal name should be used (without abbreviation), the year should be followed by a semicolon, the volume number should be included with the issue number in parentheses, and the complete page range should be provided (e.g., 123–130). For references with seven or more authors, the first six authors are listed followed by 'et al.'

8.3 Vancouver Reference Examples by Type
The following sub-sections provide a complete reference example for every reference type accepted in JCEIB manuscripts, with field-by-field annotation of the required elements. Authors must follow these formats exactly; variant formats, including APA, MLA, IEEE, Harvard, or personal adaptations of Vancouver Style, are not accepted.

8.4 Reference Quality, Currency, and Self-Citation
Include only relevant, current, and scientifically valid references. JCEIB reviewers and editors consider the reference list a reflection of the authors' expertise; outdated or selective references can lead to manuscript revisions or rejection during the review process. For research articles, at least half of the references should be from the last five years to show engagement with recent literature. Review articles should span a broader time but still demonstrate awareness of the latest developments. Self-citation, the practice that involves citing the authors' previous publications, is appropriate when those works are genuinely relevant to the current study. Authors should limit self-citations to no more than five (5) references to their own work (including co-authored papers) or 20% of the total references, whichever is lower, as per JCEIB's citation integrity policy outlined in Section 9.2. Self-citations that are not directly pertinent to the manuscript's arguments and findings, or that are added solely to boost citation counts, are considered citation manipulation and may be addressed under the JCEIB Misconduct Handling Policy.

9.  Publication Ethics and Integrity
9.1 Plagiarism and Similarity Screening 
All manuscripts submitted to JCEIB undergo screening with the Turnitin platform at both the initial submission and just before publication. This process detects plagiarism and evaluates text similarity against published literature, online sources, and journal archives. Plagiarism, defined as presenting someone else's words, ideas, data, methods, figures, or code as your own without proper attribution, is a serious breach of publication ethics and is punishable, whether done intentionally or through negligence. The prohibitions extend to mosaic plagiarism, idea plagiarism, and the misuse of unpublished work accessed during peer review or grant assessment. Similarity thresholds are applied by discipline; a high similarity score does not necessarily indicate plagiarism, as standard terminology and method descriptions, when properly attributed, are common in technical manuscripts. The editorial team reviews all flagged manuscripts on a case-by-case basis.

9.2 Self-Citation and Citation Manipulation
Citation manipulation, deliberately including references for reasons beyond scholarly attribution, is forbidden in all JCEIB publications. JCEIB follows COPE's definition, which encompasses coercive citation (editors or reviewers insisting on certain citations for acceptance or positive reviews), citation stacking (reciprocal, coordinated citation exchanges), reference fabrication (citing sources that do not exist or lack the claimed content, including AI-generated references), and unjustified excess self-citation. Authors should limit self-citations to a maximum of five (including co-authored works) or 20% of the total references, whichever is lower. All cited sources must be scientifically valid, properly credited, and directly relevant to the manuscript. Any suspicion of citation manipulation will prompt an editorial investigation; confirmed cases could lead to rejection, or, if already published, corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions.

9.3 Duplicate Submission and Dual Publication
Submitting a manuscript to JCEIB means the corresponding author confirms that the work has not been previously published in nearly the same form, is not currently being considered by another journal, and will not be submitted elsewhere during the review process at JCEIB. Both duplicate submissions, the act of submitting the same or similar manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously, and duplicate publication, publishing the same content in more than one outlet without full disclosure and editorial approval, are considered misconduct. However, legitimate secondary publication, such as translating the work into another language for a different audience with full disclosure, consent from all editors, and proper cross-referencing in both versions, is allowed with prior written approval from the JCEIB Editor-in-Chief. Posting a preprint on recognised servers is not considered prior publication and does not prevent submission, provided it is disclosed at the time of submission.

9.4 Research Data Integrity
Fabricating data, such as inventing results, observations, measurements, or responses not actually produced, as well as falsifying data by selectively removing, altering, or hiding authentic data to distort the true findings, is considered the most severe research misconduct and is classified as a Level III violation according to the JCEIB Misconduct Handling Policy. Image manipulation that distorts the original results, including selective enhancement, splicing, feature duplication, or digital processing that alters visible content, is also strictly prohibited. Acceptable image adjustments are limited to uniform changes in brightness and contrast across the entire image, which must be clearly disclosed in the figure caption. Moreover, statistical misconduct, such as cherry-picking positive results, performing inappropriate post hoc analyses, or misrepresenting data uncertainty or significance, also constitutes misconduct.

10.  Production, Proofs and Post-Acceptance
10.1 Copyediting and Pre-production Checks 
Accepted manuscripts are professionally copyedited by the UMPSA Press team, who correct grammatical and typographical errors, enhance sentence clarity and consistency, verify in-text citations against the reference list, and apply the JCEIB house style consistently. Copyeditors also prepare comprehensive article metadata for indexing, including the structured abstract, author ORCID IDs, CRediT contributor roles, disciplinary keywords, funding acknowledgements, and declaration statements. Before publication, a final similarity check is conducted; if issues are identified, the manuscript is sent to the Editor-in-Chief before proceeding with production.

10.2 Galley Proofs
After copyediting and typesetting, the corresponding author receives a final, camera-ready galley proof for review. Authors have 5 working days to verify all technical details, including equations, figures, tables, data, and references, to ensure that no errors occur during typesetting. These proofs are solely for correcting factual errors and production issues; they should not be used for language editing, content modifications, or adding new data or arguments, which are not permitted at this stage. A detailed, itemised list of corrections must be returned to the production editor within 5 days. If no feedback is provided in time, the author is deemed to have approved the proof. Corrected proofs should be returned within 72 hours (three business days) after the editorial team's follow-up contact.

10.3 Online Publication, DOI, and Indexing
After the galley proof is approved, the article is published online as the Version of Record on the JCEIB journal portal. Each article receives a Digital Object Identifier registered with CrossRef, ensuring a permanent, stable citation link. CrossMark is available for all JCEIB articles; readers accessing any article via the journal website or other platforms get an immediate, publisher-verified update on the article's status, including corrections, expressions of concern, or retraction notices issued after publication. Complete article-level metadata, such as CRediT contributor roles, ORCID IDs, funding details, and declarations, is submitted within five working days of online publication. All articles are freely and permanently accessible worldwide under the applicable Creative Commons license, in line with JCEIB's open-access policy.

10.4 Reproduction Permissions
Authors must secure written permission from the copyright holders before including any figures, tables, images, or other content previously published elsewhere in their manuscript. Typically, the copyright owner is the original publisher. A permission letter confirming approval for reproduction in JCEIB must be submitted to the editorial office prior to the manuscript moving to production. Any material that is properly credited but lacks permission will be removed before publication.

11.  Submission Checklist
Authors must verify compliance with each item on the checklist below before submitting via the online editorial management system. Manuscripts submitted without the mandatory components listed here will be returned before editorial review commences.

11.1 Manuscript File

11.2 Declarations Section

11.3 Online Submission System