Praise the Lord! What a perfect timing!

This morning I woke up and read e-mails from my professor – he sent delightful news: our paper is officially accepted!

I’ve been waiting for this day. Never thought that it finally arrives on Thanksgiving Day. A great reminder to always be grateful at all times.

This paper was first submitted this May to Green Chemistry journal but it was unfortunately rejected. We then quickly decided to submit it to ChemSusChem, another good journal relevant to our field.

It took around six months to get it finally published. Initially I thought the decision would be made known early this month when I had a family trip to Thailand and South Korea. But apparently I should wait a little bit longer for a sweeter taste.

Having gone through two major and one minor revisions, this paper would not get published without tireless guidance and support from my supervisors. It is truly a privilege to be able to work under the supervisions of Dr. Elöd Gyenge (Romania), Dr. Kevin Smith (South Africa), and Dr. Chang Soo Kim (South Korea).

This excitement reminds me of the feeling I had when my first paper got published over 5 years ago.

Many thanks to Dr. Gyenge, Dr. Smith, Dr. Kim, and the co-authors for making it happen. Their critical input and advice are very much appreciated. Thanks to the editor as well for the fast acceptance after the revised paper was submitted.

I would also thank my wife for her patience and support during almost two years of the preparation of this manuscript (since this work was first executed in February 2018). Behind the scene, I would also thank my parents for their prayers and encouragement. And ultimately, I thank God for His indescribable grace and love. He has really made everything beautiful in its time!

Finally, allow me to say that this work, even after published, remains far from perfect. And that’s normal because that’s the way a paper usually turns out to be. Nevertheless, there is one thing I can be sure: this accepted paper is very much improved compared to the earlier versions – thanks to the reviewer(s).

Imperfect work means rooms for improvement. Elusive explanation or weak arguments, if any, could lead to a critical thinking, which in turn spark new ideas.

Ideas and imaginations are after all the precursors of innovation. And that’s the nature of research.

Click here to see the paper. Thank you for reading and see you in the next post.

Vancouver, November 28, 2019