The practice of peer review is intended to ensure that only good science is published. As an objective method of guaranteeing excellence in scholarly publishing, it has been adopted by all reputable scientific journals. Our referees play a vital role in maintaining the high standards of Automation of Electric Power Systems (AEPS), which is why all incoming manuscripts are peer reviewed following the procedure outlined below.

Initial manuscript evaluation

Editorial department first evaluates all submitted manuscripts. Manuscripts rejected at this stage are insufficiently original, have serious scientific flaws, have poor grammar or language, or are outside the aims and scope of the journal. Those that meet the minimum criteria are normally passed on to at least two expert referees for reviewing. Authors of manuscripts rejected at this stage will usually be informed within one week of receipt.

Type of peer review

AEPS employs “double blind” reviewing, in which the referees remain anonymous to the author(s) throughout and following the refereeing process, whilst the identity of the author(s) is likewise unknown to the reviewers.

How the referee is selected？

Whenever possible, referees are matched to the paper according to their expertise. As our reviewer database is constantly being updated, we welcome suggestions for referees from the author(s), though such non-binding recommendations are not necessarily used.

Referee reports

Referees are asked to evaluate whether the manuscript:

              Is original as to thought and method (including data)

              Is methodologically sound

              Has results which are clearly presented and support the conclusions

              Correctly and exhaustively references previous relevant work

              Follows appropriate ethical guidelines, especially as concerns plagiarism

              Clearly adds to the knowledge and development of the field

       Language correction is not part of the peer review process, but referees are encouraged to suggest corrections of language and style to the manuscript. In the final round, the handling Editor will check matters of linguistic and stylistic correctness, and may suggest or apply corrections at this point.

How long does the review process take?

The time required for the review process is dependent on the response of the referees. For AEPS, the typical time for the first round of the refereeing process is approximately 6 weeks, with a maximum of 2 months usually. Should the referees’ reports contradict one another or a report is unnecessarily delayed, a further expert opinion may be sought. The handling editor’s decision will be sent to the author with the referees’ recommendations, usually including the latter’s verbatim comments.

Final report

A final decision to accept or reject the manuscript will be sent to the author along with the recommendations made by the referees.

Editorial Office of Automation of Electric Power Systems