JOURNAL OF MEMBRANE SCIENCE

The process was quite tortuous, but luckily I encountered a very nice editor. The first time I submitted, the editor gave me a "reject and invite to resubmit" decision. From the rejection letter, it was evident that the editor was interested in the results of my experiment. The editor mentioned that my results were good, but my writing perspective had a problem. They stated that the angles I had written about had already been analyzed by others and had mature conclusions. Therefore, there wasn't much innovation. They suggested that I write from angles such as 1.2.3 and include additional experimental aspects. The editor provided detailed suggestions and advised me to revise and resubmit after conducting the supplementary experiments. (They provided more than ten suggestions).

Following the editor's advice, I supplemented the experiments and rewrote the article, and submitted it again.

On the third day of the resubmission, the editor sent it for external review. The external review took about 20 days and involved two reviewers. Their opinions required major revisions.

After incorporating the major revisions, it was sent back to the same two reviewers the next day. One of the reviewers mentioned that I had made good improvements and it could be accepted. The other reviewer suggested some further improvements to the highlights. Therefore, the editor requested minor revisions. After completing the minor revisions, the article was accepted.

Approximately 11 days were spent on submission, and it took a long time for the return. It took more than 10 days to reach a decision after the required reviewers completed their reviews. There were a total of 5 reviewers. There were many modifications, and the suggestions made by the experts were very helpful in improving the quality of the paper. A 21-day revision deadline was given, which was very tight. Some additional analysis was added later, and the response file reached nearly 50 pages. Over 10,000 words were written, and it was checked repeatedly six times. Several all-nighters were pulled, but it was finally completed. Approximately 1/3 of the article's content was changed after the revisions. It has been 11 days since the revisions were submitted, and it is still "with editor," with the outcome unknown.