Materials journals: open calls for papers

Microneedles, since their inception as a unique transdermal drug and vaccine delivery system, have become a noteworthy system used in multiple routes, including gastrointestinal, oral (mouth cavity) and ocular, to name a few. The range of illnesses being targeted by microneedles has also increased significantly and includes infectious diseases, pain, diabetes, and allergies for example. Sensing is another upcoming application of microneedles.

Innovation in their fabrication continues to not only push the drug-carrying and delivering capacity of microneedles, but also makes mass manufacturing feasible and economical. There is also increased activity in the commercial sector with different companies attempting to bring the first microneedle-based medical device to market. 

In this context, this themed collection on ‘Microneedles’ in Journal of Materials Chemistry B and Biomaterials Science aims to bring together recent advancements in the field of microneedles that readers will find informative and useful. The topics could include microneedle fabrication and development approaches, applications of microneedles that add a new dimension to existing core knowledge in the microneedles field, sensing applications and clinical studies that evaluate efficacy or other aspects of microneedle use in humans.

Submissions to the journal should fit within the scope of Journal of Materials Chemistry B or Biomaterials Science – Please see the journal website for more information on the journal’s scope, standards, article types and author guidelines. We encourage you to submit your work to the journal that you feel best reflects the scope of your work. For this collection, we welcome full Papers, Communications and Review-type articles (Reviews or Perspectives). 

Manuscripts should be submitted via the Royal Society of Chemistry’s online submission system for Journal of Materials Chemistry B or Biomaterials Science and a "note to the editor" should be added in the submission form when uploading your files to say that this is a contribution to this themed collection. Please also inform the editorial offices by email about your intended submission: Journal of Materials Chemistry B or Biomaterials Science.

We strongly encourage you to submit an original research article. If you are interested in submitting a review-type article, please contact the Editorial Office in the first instance with a proposed title and abstract as initial approval is required before submission to limit the number of review-type articles and avoid potential topic overlap.

All submissions will undergo a rigorous initial Editorial assessment as to suitability for the journal before potential peer review. Please note that transfers between the two journals may be encouraged if your work is found to be better suited elsewhere. Please note that peer review and acceptance of your submission will not be guaranteed.

Biomaterials Science 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 Biomaterials Science.

Biomaterials Science is a Transformative Journal, and Plan S compliant

We welcome contributions on hydrogen and fuel cells in the form of Research papers, Communications, Reviews and Perspectives in the following but not limited to the categories:

• Hydrogen storage materials
• Hydrogen production and generation
• Fuel cell materials from membranes to electrodes
• Fuel cell catalysts

This cross-journal themed collection on Sustainable Composites will bring together articles* tackling the sustainability of the entire composite lifecycle, including new composite feedstocks, low-energy manufacturing, design for end-of-life, in-use benefits, extended composite lifetime and repair, material recovery and recycling. Contributions should clearly address the sustainability aspects associated with the chosen approach.

Topics include:

• Sustainable composite materials: These might include, but are not limited to bio-derived and low-carbon pathways to carbon fibre and composite resins (both drop-in and new resins); natural fibres (e.g., hemp, bamboo, and flax); new chemistries or new ways to existing chemistries; modelling for material prediction;
• Low-energy manufacturing: Efficient manufacturing processes, covering both resource and energy efficiency, e.g., UV radiation, fast curing resins, additives for low temperature curing, additive manufacturing (3D printing composites);
• Design for end of life: recyclable materials e.g., triggered degradation of thermosets, reversible adhesives, vitrimers; application of reactive modelling and machine learning.
• Enhanced composite lifetime: Self-healing technologies for composite repair e.g., vitrimers; underpinning tools e.g., accelerated testing of polymers and composites, detecting material degradation e.g., microscopy, FTIR; secondary composite applications; repair strategies; and the potential for adoption of imbedded sensor technology.
• Composite recovery and recycling: Strategies for the potential combination of chemical, biochemical and physical recycling technologies for key resin types to deliver both recycled input materials and structural building blocks as second-life materials , analytical techniques to identify composites from waste streams e.g., FTIR and laser induced breakdown spectroscopy, digital labels such as QR codes and RFID tags;
• Composite additives: e.g., adhesives, conductors, core, curing agents (including hardeners and catalysts), sizing, toughening agents, flame retardants and UV stabilisers; nanocomposites as an additive in FRP providing thermal, electrical and/or mechanical properties; additives for enhancing performance e.g., toughening agents, UV absorbers/stabilisers, sizing (coating applied to surface of fibres);
• Sustainable composite applications: These might include, but are not limited to e.g., wind turbine blades, ship hulls, hydrogen storage tanks, airplanes, and automotive parts;
• Whole system evaluation: LCA, LCE, TEA, social-economic analysis across whole composite cycle; opportunities to explore concept of ‘sustainability in use’
• Regulatory and Policy: REACH, material passporting, approval for new materials, verification, testing, adoption of standards to cover use of second-life materials

Please make sure that your submission provides an insight that advances the chemistry field or is of interest to the chemistry community.

Journal of Materials Chemistry A is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Submissions to the journal should fit within the scope of Journal of Materials Chemistry A – Please see the journal’s website for more information on the journal’s scope, standards, article types and author guidelines.

If you would like to contribute to this themed collection, please submit your article directly through the Journal of Materials Chemistry A submission service. Please mention that your submission is a contribution to the ‘Advancing energy-materials through high-throughput experiments and computation ‘collection in the “Themed issues” section of the submission form and add a “Note to the Editor” that this is from the Open Call.

The Editorial Office reserves the right to check the 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. All submissions will be subject to initial assessment and sent for peer review, if appropriate. We cannot guarantee peer review or acceptance of your submission in the journal.

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

Journal of Materials Chemistry A is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

This themed collection will focus on the application of biomaterials engineered to study innate immune function or modulate phenotypes of immune cells in regeneration and disease. The collection will cover engineered biomaterials in cancer, regeneration/wound healing, auto-immunity/trained immunity, and vaccines targeting the innate immune system.

We are happy to consider both review articles and primary research work.

Journal of Materials Chemistry B and Materials Advances share an Editorial Board so the same expert Associate Editor team handle manuscripts for both journals. You are welcome to submit to either journal, and contributions will be collated into a single collection online.

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 and Guest Editors reserve the right to check the 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 Journal of Materials Chemistry B or Materials Advances.

Please note that article processing charges apply to all articles submitted to Materials Advances if, following peer-review, they are accepted for publication. Details of the APC and discounted rates can be found here. Corresponding authors who are not already members of the Royal Society of Chemistry are entitled to one year’s Affiliate membership as part of their APC. Find out more about our member benefits.

Journal of Materials Chemistry B is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Injectable hydrogels have emerged as intelligent and versatile materials that have been proven to possess huge potential for many biomedical applications including drug delivery, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine. Hydrogels are a class of polymers with highly hydrated 3D networks that have microenvironmental properties such as oxygen/nutrient permeability that are similar to the native extracellular matrix. In addition to possessing the typical advantages of conventional hydrogels, injectable hydrogels offer an extra unique feature, which enables minimally invasive injectability and durability for irregularly shaped sites. As such, there has been a growing interest of using injectable hydrogels as scaffolds/carriers for therapeutic agents, including but not limited to drugs, cells, proteins, and bioactive molecules, targeted to treat chronic diseases including cancer, but also to facilitate the repair and regeneration of damaged organs/tissues.

In this context, it is pertinent to compile this themed collection focusing on recent rapid development in the field of injectable hydrogels. To this end, this themed collection in Journal of Materials Chemistry B and Biomaterials Science aims at providing a platform for recent developments in this rapidly evolving field of injectable hydrogels including, but not limited to:

• Emerging chemistries
• Synthesis pathways
• Fabrication methods
• Cell-material interactions
• In vitro and in vivo performances
• Targeted applications (drug delivery, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine)

Submissions to the journal should fit within the scope of Journal of Materials Chemistry B or Biomaterials Science – Please see the journal’s website for more information on the journal’s scope, standards, article types and author guidelines. We encourage you to submit your work to the journal you feel is most appropriate.

For this collection, we strongly encourage full primary research in the way of Full Papers or Communications.

If you would like to contribute to this themed collection, please submit your article directly through the Biomaterials Science submission service or the Journal of Materials Chemistry B submission service. Please mention that your submission is a contribution to the Injectable Hydrogels collection in the “Themed issues” section of the submission form and add a “Note to the Editor” that this is from 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. All submissions will be subject to initial assessment and sent for peer review, if appropriate. We cannot guarantee peer review or acceptance of your submission in the journal.

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.

Journal of Materials Chemistry B is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

This cross-journal themed collection on Sustainable Composites will bring together articles* tackling the sustainability of the entire composite lifecycle, including new composite feedstocks, low-energy manufacturing, design for end-of-life, in-use benefits, extended composite lifetime and repair, material recovery and recycling. Contributions should clearly address the sustainability aspects associated with the chosen approach.

Topics include:

• Sustainable composite materials: These might include, but are not limited to bio-derived and low-carbon pathways to carbon fibre and composite resins (both drop-in and new resins); natural fibres (e.g., hemp, bamboo, and flax); new chemistries or new ways to existing chemistries; modelling for material prediction;
• Low-energy manufacturing: Efficient manufacturing processes, covering both resource and energy efficiency, e.g., UV radiation, fast curing resins, additives for low temperature curing, additive manufacturing (3D printing composites);
• Design for end of life: recyclable materials e.g., triggered degradation of thermosets, reversible adhesives, vitrimers; application of reactive modelling and machine learning.
• Enhanced composite lifetime: Self-healing technologies for composite repair e.g., vitrimers; underpinning tools e.g., accelerated testing of polymers and composites, detecting material degradation e.g., microscopy, FTIR; secondary composite applications; repair strategies; and the potential for adoption of imbedded sensor technology.
• Composite recovery and recycling: Strategies for the potential combination of chemical, biochemical and physical recycling technologies for key resin types to deliver both recycled input materials and structural building blocks as second-life materials , analytical techniques to identify composites from waste streams e.g., FTIR and laser induced breakdown spectroscopy, digital labels such as QR codes and RFID tags;
• Composite additives: e.g., adhesives, conductors, core, curing agents (including hardeners and catalysts), sizing, toughening agents, flame retardants and UV stabilisers; nanocomposites as an additive in FRP providing thermal, electrical and/or mechanical properties; additives for enhancing performance e.g., toughening agents, UV absorbers/stabilisers, sizing (coating applied to surface of fibres);
• Sustainable composite applications: These might include, but are not limited to e.g., wind turbine blades, ship hulls, hydrogen storage tanks, airplanes, and automotive parts;
• Whole system evaluation: LCA, LCE, TEA, social-economic analysis across whole composite cycle; opportunities to explore concept of ‘sustainability in use’
• Regulatory and Policy: REACH, material passporting, approval for new materials, verification, testing, adoption of standards to cover use of second-life materials

Please make sure that your submission provides an insight that advances the chemistry field or is of interest to the chemistry community.

Journal of Materials Chemistry C is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Brain-inspired artificial synapses compute beyond the bottlenecks of von Neumann architectures by adapting highly sustainable information processing. Fabrication of artificial synapses in a physical device with the functionality of the biological neural network is an attractive research area. Complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) analog circuits emulate the synaptic performance of hardware-based neural networks. Since the hardware implementation of neuromorphic computation systems based on CMOS consumes much more energy than a natural system, numerous devices have been studied to realize an effective neuromorphic computing system. Among the proposed devices, memristors have emerged as the most efficient candidates to emulate biological synapses with high learning speed.

Memristors are two-terminal nanoelectronic devices with low power consumption, sustainable scaling, cost-effectiveness, and superior computing efficacy. They process information and compromise various fundamental operations that surpass typically integrated circuit technology. The temporal switching recommends that memristors are capable of acting as a physical system that imitates the synaptic memory function more precisely than the CMOS system.

This themed collection aims to highlight the recent developments, opportunities, and challenges in memristors and their applications in neuromorphic devices. We will outline the recent advances in neuromorphic nanodevices based on memristors by focusing on their fabrication and characterization methods. We will emphasize emerging bioinspired memristive devices and their improved performance by device structure and applied pulses engineering. We will also present outlooks of nanoelectronic devices and nanomaterials such as 2D materials, hybrid perovskites, and natural polymers.

We welcome contributions on memristors and artificial synapses in the form of research articles, communications, and reviews in the following categories.

Novel nanomanufacturing and processing methods of memristors:

• Fabrication and characterization of memristors, memtransistors, and memcapacitors
• Novel top-down and bottom-up approaches for nanofabrication of memristors
• Specified electrical and structural characterization techniques
• Novel approaches to realize flexible or rigid electronic synapses
• Novel nanomaterials and device structures to increase memristive device reliability and performance 

Novel Memristive Materials:

• 2D materials such as graphene, phosphorene, and transition metal dichalcogenides
• Renewable materials, including biodegradables and biocompatible materials
• Organic and bio-electronic materials
• Heterogenous structures with organic-inorganic hybrid materials
• Flexible memristive materials

Emerging memristive devices and architectures:

• Biomemristors
• Optoelectronic memristors
• Ferroelectric memristive systems
• Spintronic memristors
• Assimilation of nanomaterials in neuromorphic computing systems based on memristors

Memristive devices enabled neuromorphic computing applications:

• Artificial synapses and neurons
• Artificial synapses by renewable materials
• Photonic and optoelectronic synapses
• Artificial neural networks
• Convolutional neural networks
• Recurrent neural networks such as reservoir computing
• Logic-in-memory system
• Neuromorphic and bio-inspired circuits and systems
• Explanation of operational principle of artificial synapses via modeling

Find out more detail on our journal blog page here.

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 and Guest Editors reserve the right to check the 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 Materials Advances.

This themed collection will focus on the application of biomaterials engineered to study innate immune function or modulate phenotypes of immune cells in regeneration and disease. The collection will cover engineered biomaterials in cancer, regeneration/wound healing, auto-immunity/trained immunity, and vaccines targeting the innate immune system.

We are happy to consider both review articles and primary research work.

Journal of Materials Chemistry B and Materials Advances share an Editorial Board so the same expert Associate Editor team handle manuscripts for both journals. You are welcome to submit to either journal, and contributions will be collated into a single collection online.

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 and Guest Editors reserve the right to check the 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 the Journal of Materials Chemistry B or Materials Advances.

Please note that article processing charges apply to all articles submitted to Materials Advances if, following peer-review, they are accepted for publication. Details of the APC and discounted rates can be found here. Corresponding authors who are not already members of the Royal Society of Chemistry are entitled to one year’s Affiliate membership as part of their APC. Find out more about our member benefits.

Specific topics that are welcome cover functional materials and hybrid systems for:

• Supporting circulation
• Advanced sensing applications
• Biomedical applications
• Green chemistry development
• Sustainable materials
• Materials at the bio interface
• Artificial intelligence-supported materials development
• Materials development for technological applications for the internet-of-things 

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 and Guest Editors reserve 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 Materials Advances.

Please note that article processing charges apply to all articles submitted to Materials Advances if, following peer-review, they are accepted for publication. Details of the APC and discounted rates can be found here. Corresponding authors who are not already members of the Royal Society of Chemistry are entitled to one year’s Affiliate membership as part of their APC. Find out more about our member benefits.

We welcome contributions on transition metal-based 2D materials in the form of research articles, communications, or reviews in the following categories:

• Surface engineering techniques (novel strategical modifications) for transition metal-based layered materials
• Anti-corrosion applications by 2D materials including layer double hydroxides (LDHs)
• Energy applications especially in supercapacitors, batteries, photo and electrochemical-water splitting

Keywords: Surface engineering; 2D materials; Layered materials; Anti-corrosion; Energy

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 and Guest Editors reserve the right to check the 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 Materials Advances.

Please note that article processing charges apply to all articles submitted to Materials Advances if, following peer-review, they are accepted for publication. Details of the APC and discounted rates can be found here. Corresponding authors who are not already members of the Royal Society of Chemistry are entitled to one year’s Affiliate membership as part of their APC. Find out more about our member benefits

This cross-journal themed collection on Sustainable Composites will bring together articles* tackling the sustainability of the entire composite lifecycle, including new composite feedstocks, low-energy manufacturing, design for end-of-life, in-use benefits, extended composite lifetime and repair, material recovery and recycling. Contributions should clearly address the sustainability aspects associated with the chosen approach.

Topics include:

• Sustainable composite materials: These might include, but are not limited to bio-derived and low-carbon pathways to carbon fibre and composite resins (both drop-in and new resins); natural fibres (e.g., hemp, bamboo, and flax); new chemistries or new ways to existing chemistries; modelling for material prediction;
• Low-energy manufacturing: Efficient manufacturing processes, covering both resource and energy efficiency, e.g., UV radiation, fast curing resins, additives for low temperature curing, additive manufacturing (3D printing composites);
• Design for end of life: recyclable materials e.g., triggered degradation of thermosets, reversible adhesives, vitrimers; application of reactive modelling and machine learning.
• Enhanced composite lifetime: Self-healing technologies for composite repair e.g., vitrimers; underpinning tools e.g., accelerated testing of polymers and composites, detecting material degradation e.g., microscopy, FTIR; secondary composite applications; repair strategies; and the potential for adoption of imbedded sensor technology.
• Composite recovery and recycling: Strategies for the potential combination of chemical, biochemical and physical recycling technologies for key resin types to deliver both recycled input materials and structural building blocks as second-life materials , analytical techniques to identify composites from waste streams e.g., FTIR and laser induced breakdown spectroscopy, digital labels such as QR codes and RFID tags;
• Composite additives: e.g., adhesives, conductors, core, curing agents (including hardeners and catalysts), sizing, toughening agents, flame retardants and UV stabilisers; nanocomposites as an additive in FRP providing thermal, electrical and/or mechanical properties; additives for enhancing performance e.g., toughening agents, UV absorbers/stabilisers, sizing (coating applied to surface of fibres);
• Sustainable composite applications: These might include, but are not limited to e.g., wind turbine blades, ship hulls, hydrogen storage tanks, airplanes, and automotive parts;
• Whole system evaluation: LCA, LCE, TEA, social-economic analysis across whole composite cycle; opportunities to explore concept of ‘sustainability in use’
• Regulatory and Policy: REACH, material passporting, approval for new materials, verification, testing, adoption of standards to cover use of second-life materials

Please make sure that your submission provides an insight that advances the chemistry field or is of interest to the chemistry community.

Specific topics that are welcome cover functional materials and hybrid systems for:

• Li based solid state batteries
• Beyond Li conductors (Na, K)
• Protonic Ceramic Reversible Fuel Cells: electrolyte and anode/cathode electrode design catalysts, cell component, cell design, reversible and dynamic operation, and testing
• Oxygen-ion fuel cells and electrolysis cells, cell component, cell design, reversible and dynamic operation, and testing
• Ceramic-based oxygen and hydrogen separation membranes and membrane systems for natural gas processing
• Computational materials science of ceramic ionic conductors

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 and Guest Editors reserve 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 Materials Advances.

Please note that article processing charges apply to all articles submitted to Materials Advances if, following peer-review, they are accepted for publication. Details of the APC and discounted rates can be found here. Corresponding authors who are not already members of the Royal Society of Chemistry are entitled to one year’s Affiliate membership as part of their APC. Find out more about our member benefits.

This cross-journal themed collection on Sustainable Composites will bring together articles* tackling the sustainability of the entire composite lifecycle, including new composite feedstocks, low-energy manufacturing, design for end-of-life, in-use benefits, extended composite lifetime and repair, material recovery and recycling. Contributions should clearly address the sustainability aspects associated with the chosen approach.

Topics include:

• Sustainable composite materials: These might include, but are not limited to bio-derived and low-carbon pathways to carbon fibre and composite resins (both drop-in and new resins); natural fibres (e.g., hemp, bamboo, and flax); new chemistries or new ways to existing chemistries; modelling for material prediction;
• Low-energy manufacturing: Efficient manufacturing processes, covering both resource and energy efficiency, e.g., UV radiation, fast curing resins, additives for low temperature curing, additive manufacturing (3D printing composites);
• Design for end of life: recyclable materials e.g., triggered degradation of thermosets, reversible adhesives, vitrimers; application of reactive modelling and machine learning.
• Enhanced composite lifetime: Self-healing technologies for composite repair e.g., vitrimers; underpinning tools e.g., accelerated testing of polymers and composites, detecting material degradation e.g., microscopy, FTIR; secondary composite applications; repair strategies; and the potential for adoption of imbedded sensor technology.
• Composite recovery and recycling: Strategies for the potential combination of chemical, biochemical and physical recycling technologies for key resin types to deliver both recycled input materials and structural building blocks as second-life materials , analytical techniques to identify composites from waste streams e.g., FTIR and laser induced breakdown spectroscopy, digital labels such as QR codes and RFID tags;
• Composite additives: e.g., adhesives, conductors, core, curing agents (including hardeners and catalysts), sizing, toughening agents, flame retardants and UV stabilisers; nanocomposites as an additive in FRP providing thermal, electrical and/or mechanical properties; additives for enhancing performance e.g., toughening agents, UV absorbers/stabilisers, sizing (coating applied to surface of fibres);
• Sustainable composite applications: These might include, but are not limited to e.g., wind turbine blades, ship hulls, hydrogen storage tanks, airplanes, and automotive parts;
• Whole system evaluation: LCA, LCE, TEA, social-economic analysis across whole composite cycle; opportunities to explore concept of ‘sustainability in use’
• Regulatory and Policy: REACH, material passporting, approval for new materials, verification, testing, adoption of standards to cover use of second-life materials

Please make sure that your submission provides an insight that advances the chemistry field or is of interest to the chemistry community.

The Emerging Investigator Series has an overall objective to showcase significant research by newer voices from across the worldwide materials chemistry research community. We will consider additional applications and nominations on their own merit. Self-nominations are also strongly encouraged.

Both research articles and review articles are welcome to the series.  Papers accepted for publication in the Emerging Investigator Series will be published in the earliest available issue and collated together in a dedicated Emerging Investigator Series page that will appear across Frontiers journals’ websites. All submissions to the Emerging Investigator Series will be subject to the journal’s high standards in peer review.

In order to be featured in the Emerging Investigator Series, contributors must:

• currently, be an independent research leader
• be the lead author (first author and/or corresponding author) of their article at the journal
• have either a) hold a PhD degree and be at the age of 40 or less in the year of submission, or b) received their PhD no earlier than 01 January of the year 12 years prior to the year of submission, or c) have no more than 12 years of post-PhD research experience on 01 January in the year of submission when taking into account any career breaks.

If you are interested to contribute to this series, please provide an up-to-date CV to the Editorial Office before submission, or simply opt-in for this series during submitting your manuscript and attach the CV as a supporting document.

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

Catalysts have been the main driver for the design of ever new polymers with highly diverse and specialized properties. In this themed issue, we aim to highlight research that makes use of catalysis to optimize the reverse. How can we get the most value out of plastic waste? In this quest, we especially welcome manuscripts that address the challenges unique to plastics. These include but are not limited to additive impurities; mixed polymer streams; how to contact the very viscous, high molecular weight polymer with the (micro-)porous catalyst or a cleavage agent and more broadly catalytic conversion of sustainable polymeric materials for a circular plastic economy. Unconventional approaches via photo-, electro- or mechano-catalytic approaches and combinations thereof are also very welcome. We highly encourage to place the work in the context of performance metrics of green chemistry. 

Submissions should fit the scope of either Polymer Chemistry or Catalysis Science & Technology. We would suggest that articles focused on synthetic and polymer chemistry aspects would be best suited to Polymer Chemistry, whereas articles focused on catalytic and/or related methodological advances would be appropriate for Catalysis Science & Technology. The collaborative joint special issue recognizes that management of plastic wastes relies on research conducted at the intersection of polymer chemistry and catalysis. You may submit to whichever journal you feel is most relevant to your current research. Please note that your article may be offered a transfer to the alternate journal if deemed more appropriate by the handling editor. 

Manuscripts should be submitted via the Royal Society of Chemistry’s online submission for either Catalysis Science & Technology or Polymer Chemistry service and the Editorial Office informed by email to catalysis-rsc@rsc.org (submissions to Catalysis Science & Technology) or polymers-rsc@rsc.org (submissions to Polymer Chemistry). Please add a “note to the editor” in the submission form when uploading your files to say that this is a contribution to 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 final themed collection is not guaranteed. 

Related to this joint themed collection, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, B and C currently have an open call to submit to a joint themed collection on ‘Polymer Upcycling’. This aims to explore the latest developments in materials characterization, polymer design and synthesis, physical chemistry and molecular understanding of plastic decomposition and transformation that contribute to a broad knowledge base for upcycling waste plastics. If you are interested in submitting to this themed collection, find out more here. 

Polymer Chemistry is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

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 Polymer Chemistry.

Polymer Chemistry 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 Polymer Chemistry.

Polymer Chemistry is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant

Functional nanomaterials have attracted great interest and have become exceptional emerging materials for molecular diagnostics. They are providing new opportunities for conceptualizing analytical method development for molecular sensors and healthcare diagnostics. Recent insights into functional nanomaterials have resulted in the development of rapid miniaturized analytical approaches for sensing various biomarkers in biofluids. Interestingly, functional nanomaterials display remarkable optical and electronic properties, attributable to the development of sensing devices for monitoring the concentration of biomarkers in body fluids and for medical diagnostics. 

The aim of this themed collection is to bring together cutting-edge research on the modification of various nanostructured materials (metal nanoparticles, quantum dots, metal nanoclusters, carbon nanostructures, MXenes, perovskite, and hybrid nanomaterials) with different ligand chemistries to develop plasmonic, fluorescence and electrochemical sensors for molecular diagnostics, and focus on providing insights into nanostructure modification to improve selectivity and sensitivity for translating diagnostic tools from the lab to point-of-care diagnostics. We welcome articles on the following topics:

• Functional 0D nanostructured materials for molecular sensing 
• Plasmonic fluorescent sensors for point-of-care diagnostics
• Nanostructure-based paper strips for biomarker detection
• Functional nanomaterials in diagnostics and therapeutics
• Nanomaterials for molecular imaging and therapeutics

You are welcome to submit articles on the abovementioned topics. Sensors & Diagnostics publishes high-quality innovative research in the field of sensors as well as diagnostics, molecular imaging, and molecular therapeutics. For more information on the journal scope, standards, article types, and author guidelines, please visit Sensors & Diagnostics. This open call for papers is for the following article types:

• Communications
• Primary Research Articles
• Reviews

If you would like to contribute to this themed issue, you can submit your article directly at https://rsc.li/sensors and inform the editorial office by emailing our team. Please mention that your submission is a contribution to Functional Nanomaterials for Sensing and Diagnostics Applications in the Themed Issue section of the submission form, and add a Note to the Editor mentioning this open call. 

The Editorial Office reserves the right to check the suitability of submissions in relation to the scope of the collection and the inclusion of accepted articles in the collection is not guaranteed. 

Please note that all submissions are subject to the journal’s normal peer review processes, with an initial assessment to confirm the manuscript's suitability for full peer review. If you have any questions about the journal or the collection, please email us. We would be happy to answer them.

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 Soft Matter.

Soft Matter 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 Soft Matter

Soft Matter is a Transformative Journal and Plan S compliant