Submission of Papers

Submission of a paper implies that it has not been published previously, that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, and that if accepted it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, without the written consent of the publisher. All papers should be written in English. All papers will be independently refereed. For more information about how the process is conducted for this journal, please take a look at the peer review policy statement here

Types of Contributions
Research papers; review articles; case studies; technical notes; book reviews; reports of conferences and meetings; letters to the Editor.

Manuscript Preparation
The entire publication process for Composite Structures is handled electronically, which shortens publication times. All papers should be submitted electronically through http://ees.elsevier.com/cost

Prior to submitting your paper, please follow the instructions given below. Please note that you must have an email address to use the online submission system.

Authors submit their article online by simply registering, logging-in, and submitting. Editors will then invite potential reviewers by email.

Paper Length: Generally, the size of the manuscript should not exceed 6000 words or about 12 printed pages.

Abstracts: The Abstract should be of about 100-150 words, reporting concisely on the purpose and results of the paper.

Text: Follow this order when typing manuscripts: Title, Authors, Affiliations, Abstract, Keywords, Main text, Acknowledgements, Appendix, References, Vitae, Figure Captions and then Tables. Do not import the Figures or Tables into your text. The corresponding author should be identified with an asterisk and footnote. All other footnotes (except for table footnotes) should be identified with superscript Arabic numbers.

Symbols: The SI system should be used for all scientific and laboratory data; if, in certain instances, it is necessary to quote other units, these should be added in parentheses. Temperatures should be given in degrees Celsius. The unit 'billion'(10⁹ in America, 10¹² in Europe) is ambiguous and should not be used.

References: All publications cited in the text should be presented in a list of references following the text of the manuscript. In the text refer to references by a number in square brackets on the line (e.g. Since Sonti[1]), and the full reference should be given in a numerical list at the end of the paper.
References should be given in the following form:
1. Sonti SS, Davalos JF, Zipfel MG, Gang Rao HVS. A review of wood cross tie performance. Forest Products Journal 1995;45(9):55-58.
2. Hetenyi M. Beams on elastic foundation. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 1946.
3. Adali S. Lay-up optimization of laminated plates under buckling loads. In: Turvey GJ, Marshall IH, editors. Buckling and postbuckling of composite plates. London: Chapman and Hall, 1995. p. 329-365.
4. Adali S, Verijenko VE, Galileev SM, Matrosov AV. Method of initial function in three-dimensional analysis of laminated composite structures. In: Composites Modelling and Processing Science, Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Composite Materials (ICCM/9), Madrid, 12-16 July 1993. p. 23-30.

Illustrations:

Please upload one copy of the full paper excluding graphics. Please upload figures as graphics file separately (please include figure numbers and captions on the same page as the figures). The system automatically converts source files to a single Adobe Acrobat PDF version of the article, which is used in the peer-review process. Please note that even though manuscript source files are converted to PDF at submission for the review process, these source files are needed for further processing after acceptance.
Colour: Where colour figures are required in print, the author will be charged accordingly. Further details of cost are available from Author Services, at Elsevier. Colour online is free.

Tables: Tables should be numbered consecutively and given a suitable caption. Footnotes to tables should be typed below the table and should be referred to by superscript lowercase letters. No vertical rules should be used. Tables should not duplicate results presented elsewhere in the manuscript, (e.g. in graphs).

Proofs
One set of page proofs in PDF format will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding Author. Elsevier now sends PDF proofs which can be annotated; for this you will need to download Adobe Reader version 7 available free from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html. Instructions on how to annotate PDF files will accompany the proofs.
If you do not wish to use the PDF annotations function, you may list the corrections (including replies to the Query Form) and return to Elsevier in an e-mail. Please list your corrections quoting line number. If, for any reason, this is not possible, then mark the corrections and any other comments (including replies to the Query Form) on a printout of your proof and return by fax, or scan the pages and e-mail, or by post.
Please use this proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables and figures. Significant changes to the article as accepted for publication will only be considered at this stage with permission from the Editor. We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately. Therefore, it is important to ensure that all of your corrections are sent back to us in one communication: please check carefully before replying, as inclusion of any subsequent corrections cannot be guaranteed. Proofreading is solely your responsibility. Note that Elsevier may proceed with the publication of your article if no response is received.

Offprints
The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail or, alternatively, the option of 25 free paper offprints. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use.

Copyright
All authors must sign the "Transfer of Copyright" agreement before the article can be published. This transfer agreement enables Elsevier Ltd to protect the copyrighted material for the authors, but does not relinquish the author's proprietary rights. The copyright transfer covers the exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute the article, including reprints, photographic reproductions, microfilm or any other reproductions of similar nature and translations. Includes the right to adapt the article for use in conjunction with computer systems and programs, including reproduction or publication in machine-readable form and incorporation in retrieval systems. Authors are responsible for obtaining from the copyright holder permission to reproduce any figures for which copyright exists.

Author Enquiries:
For enquiries relating to the submission of articles (including electronic submission where available) please visit this journal's homepage at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/compstruct You can track accepted articles at http://www.elsevier.com/trackarticle and set up e-mail alerts to inform you of when an article's status has changed, as well as copyright information, frequently asked questions and more. Contact details for questions arising after acceptance of an article, especially those relating to proofs, are provided after registration of an article for publication.