Trends in Green Chemistry Research between 2012 and 2022: Current Trends and Research Agenda

Reviewer

Comment

Respuesta

Reviewer 2

1. The most important remark concerns the trend analysis, which is announced in the title. According to the authors, the trend in the number of green chemistry publications is exponential. However, trend analysis is absolutely insufficient. There is no trend test just in the chapter 3.1. an exponential regression analysis is performed, which is not exactly the same as a trend study. Unfortunately, this analysis is performed on a very small random sample (11 items), and the entire study of the quality of fit is based only on the value of the coefficient of determination. In this situation, we can talk about a possible upward tendency... Anyway, please correct this analysis, and also describe histograph (figure 2) in detail (e.g. what does "percentage" mean in the legend), because the reader should be able to understand each plot without any problems.

In this case, the title "Research Trends" goes beyond the frequency of publications per year, which the reviewer highlights from Figure 2. Research trends include analysis of the authors, journals, and countries most likely to publish, as well as thematic trends derived from literary production.

Reviewer 2

2. Some plots/figures seem familiar to me from the Scopus and Web of Science databases. I am asking for information whether the graphs were made by the authors or are taken from databases.

The "Own elaboration" is added to all the graphs, understanding that each one of them was elaborated autonomously, and not extracted directly from each database

Reviewer 2

3. The titles of the figures are insufficient - what the reader should know, for example, from the title of figure 3. "Main journals" or "Main countries". All titles are absolutely room for improvement.

The title of the figures in question is adjusted by adding more detail and adding the "own elaboration"

Reviewer 3

Title: “--- Current trends and research agenda” should be changed into “--- Current Trends and Research Agenda”.

Adjust the use of capital letters in the title

Reviewer 3

Page 3 Line 123: The correction of “such as the one conducted by [46]” into “such as the one conducted by Sharma and Demir [46]” would be better.

The aforementioned citation is adjusted

Reviewer 3

Page 3 Lines 151-152: “RQ6: What are the main thematic clusters in Green Chemistry? RQ7: What are the emerging and growing keywords in the field of Green Chemistry research?”: RQ6 and RQ7 should be displayed in two lines.

The error is corrected and the two questions are presented in two different lines

Reviewer 3

Page 4 Line 153: The correction of “2. Materials and Methods” into “Methodology” would be better.

Adjust section title

Reviewer 3

Line 224: “it's proposed an analysis in three different stages”: This sentence should be improved slightly.

A slight adjustment of the phrase is made, according to the reviewer's indications

Reviewer 3

In Figure 3, some journals should be correctly written as follows:
ACS Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering
Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry
Journal of Chemical Education
RSC Advances
Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy

Adjust the name of the journals in Figure 3

Reviewer 3

Line 321: “Figure 6 R. shows”: A mistake in writing.

In the text, it is not as "Figure 6 R. sample", but as "Figure 6 sample"

Reviewer 3

Line 321: Figure 6 shows the green chemistry-related keyword network ---

Duplicate paragraph where this sentence was found is eliminated

Reviewer 3

Line 326: Figure 8 shows the keyword network related to green chemistry ---

The number of the figure is adjusted, the correct one was Figure 6

Reviewer 3

Lines 341-342: --- a total of five lines of research are identified, as shown in Figure 7

The order of the figure is checked, it is correct

Reviewer 3

Line 338: Figure 6. Green chemistry keyword network

The title of the graph is located before mentioning Figure 7

Reviewer 3

Line 357: Figure 7. Lines of research based on thematic clusters

Figure 7 is correctly positioned

Reviewer 3

Line 384: Figure 8. Overlay visualisation of green chemistry keywords

Adjust the title of the graph according to the recommendations of the reviewer

Reviewer 3

Please check the appearance sequence of the aforementioned figures.

The order of the figures is reviewed and adjusted. There was an error between Figure 6 and Figure 8

Reviewer 3

Line 407: “3.3. Thematic analysis of Green Chemistry Research”: Analysis.

The word "Analysis" is replaced by the word "component", to account for the purpose of the stage in question

Reviewer 3

Line 320: “3.2. Structure indicators of Green Chemistry Research”: Indicators.

No action to be applied is identified

Reviewer 3

2.4. Search Strategies: The use of “Green Chemistry" or "Sustainable Chemistry" or "Green-chemistry" is not enough because green chemistry deals with too many aspects. Of course, Green Chemistry is a huge theme, and a bibliometric analysis is difficult to cover all aspects.

Section 2.6 is added to the methodology, accounting for the existing bias due to the inclusion of keywords in the search strategy.

Reviewer

Comment

Respuesta

Reviewer 2

1. The most important remark concerns the trend analysis, which is announced in the title. According to the authors, the trend in the number of green chemistry publications is exponential. However, trend analysis is absolutely insufficient. There is no trend test just in the chapter 3.1. an exponential regression analysis is performed, which is not exactly the same as a trend study. Unfortunately, this analysis is performed on a very small random sample (11 items), and the entire study of the quality of fit is based only on the value of the coefficient of determination. In this situation, we can talk about a possible upward tendency... Anyway, please correct this analysis, and also describe histograph (figure 2) in detail (e.g. what does "percentage" mean in the legend), because the reader should be able to understand each plot without any problems.

In this case, the title "Research Trends" goes beyond the frequency of publications per year, which the reviewer highlights from Figure 2. Research trends include analysis of the authors, journals, and countries most likely to publish, as well as thematic trends derived from literary production.

Reviewer 2

2. Some plots/figures seem familiar to me from the Scopus and Web of Science databases. I am asking for information whether the graphs were made by the authors or are taken from databases.

The "Own elaboration" is added to all the graphs, understanding that each one of them was elaborated autonomously, and not extracted directly from each database

Reviewer 2

3. The titles of the figures are insufficient - what the reader should know, for example, from the title of figure 3. "Main journals" or "Main countries". All titles are absolutely room for improvement.

The title of the figures in question is adjusted by adding more detail and adding the "own elaboration"

Reviewer

Comment

Respuesta

Reviewer 3

Title: “--- Current trends and research agenda” should be changed into “--- Current Trends and Research Agenda”.

Adjust the use of capital letters in the title

Reviewer 3

Page 3 Line 123: The correction of “such as the one conducted by [46]” into “such as the one conducted by Sharma and Demir [46]” would be better.

The aforementioned citation is adjusted

Reviewer 3

Page 3 Lines 151-152: “RQ6: What are the main thematic clusters in Green Chemistry? RQ7: What are the emerging and growing keywords in the field of Green Chemistry research?”: RQ6 and RQ7 should be displayed in two lines.

The error is corrected and the two questions are presented in two different lines

Reviewer 3

Page 4 Line 153: The correction of “2. Materials and Methods” into “Methodology” would be better.

Adjust section title

Reviewer 3

Line 224: “it's proposed an analysis in three different stages”: This sentence should be improved slightly.

A slight adjustment of the phrase is made, according to the reviewer's indications

Reviewer 3

In Figure 3, some journals should be correctly written as follows:
ACS Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering
Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry
Journal of Chemical Education
RSC Advances
Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy

Adjust the name of the journals in Figure 3

Reviewer 3

Line 321: “Figure 6 R. shows”: A mistake in writing.

In the text, it is not as "Figure 6 R. sample", but as "Figure 6 sample"

Reviewer 3

Line 321: Figure 6 shows the green chemistry-related keyword network ---

Duplicate paragraph where this sentence was found is eliminated

Reviewer 3

Line 326: Figure 8 shows the keyword network related to green chemistry ---

The number of the figure is adjusted, the correct one was Figure 6

Reviewer 3

Lines 341-342: --- a total of five lines of research are identified, as shown in Figure 7

The order of the figure is checked, it is correct

Reviewer 3

Line 338: Figure 6. Green chemistry keyword network

The title of the graph is located before mentioning Figure 7

Reviewer 3

Line 357: Figure 7. Lines of research based on thematic clusters

Figure 7 is correctly positioned

Reviewer 3

Line 384: Figure 8. Overlay visualisation of green chemistry keywords

Adjust the title of the graph according to the recommendations of the reviewer

Reviewer 3

Please check the appearance sequence of the aforementioned figures.

The order of the figures is reviewed and adjusted. There was an error between Figure 6 and Figure 8

Reviewer 3

Line 407: “3.3. Thematic analysis of Green Chemistry Research”: Analysis.

The word "Analysis" is replaced by the word "component", to account for the purpose of the stage in question

Reviewer 3

Line 320: “3.2. Structure indicators of Green Chemistry Research”: Indicators.

No action to be applied is identified

Reviewer 3

2.4. Search Strategies: The use of “Green Chemistry" or "Sustainable Chemistry" or "Green-chemistry" is not enough because green chemistry deals with too many aspects. Of course, Green Chemistry is a huge theme, and a bibliometric analysis is difficult to cover all aspects.

Section 2.6 is added to the methodology, accounting for the existing bias due to the inclusion of keywords in the search strategy.

Reviewer

Comment

Response

R1

 1.      Introduction: should contain information on how combined techniques of bibliometric and social network analysis have been used so far in the literature and how this study aims to help advance research and improve bibliometric reliability.

Two paragraphs are added explaining the way in which the scientific literature has made use of bibliometric analysis and social networks, as well as the way in which the present study contributes to the research.

R1

 2.      Methods: It is suggested to be structured in three parts: Data collection, Data Bibliometric Analysis, and Data Visualization.

For this specific case, the organization of the sections of the methodology is proposed according to the PRISMA statement, for literature reviews.

R1

 3.      Data collection: the query string should be selected very carefully.

For this specific case, the organization of the sections of the methodology is proposed according to the PRISMA statement, for literature reviews.

R1

 4.      Data collection: the exact applied query string and the exact number of articles retrieved should be given (articles better included in Supplementary material), and the exact date that the search was conducted needs also to be stated. The reason is that any application of the exact same query string at any subsequent time will yield, inevitably, a larger number of articles as the database does not provide the option to limit search results by an exact date.

Regarding the articles recovered, mention had already been made
in the data management section, where, according to the reviewer's instructions, the moment in which the search strategy was materialized is specified.

R1

 5.      Dominant effective collaborations between countries would also be of interest to be included in the analysis.

An additional graph is added on the scientific cooperation network between countries, analyzing the main relationships found, according to the reviewer's indications.

R1

 In order to revise the manuscript, authors are suggested to consider the following references:
 Sharma, S., & Demir, H. (2019). Green Chemistry in Scientific Literature: A Bibliometric Study and Research Trends (1st ed.). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003002352.
Urhan, B., Hoştut, S., Güdekli, İ.A. et al. Climate change and marketing: a bibliometric analysis of research from 1992 to 2022. Environ Sci Pollut Res (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-26071-9.
 Mishra, M., Sudarsan, D., Santos, C.A.G. et al. An overview of research on natural resources and indigenous communities: a bibliometric analysis based on Scopus database (1979–2020). Environ Monit Assess 193, 59 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-020-08793-2

The suggested bibliographical references are used for the review of the manuscript.

R2

Abstract.  At the end of the section, the authors will include a paragraph explaining who and why can benefit of the results of the study.

What is requested is added to the end of the abstract, without exceeding the maximum number of words allowed by the journal.

R2

Introduction. Line 37. Summarize the most important principles of green chemistry.

The 12 principles of green chemistry are added, supported by the source that mentions them

R2

At the end of the section, the authors will inform the readers whether previous bibliometric  studies on the topic of Green Chemistry are available in literature. If similar studies were already carried out, the authors will discuss which improvements their work bring.

A paragraph is added in the introductory section, where another bibliometric on Green Chemistry is mentioned, mentioning that the present study contributes to update the findings found, and increase existing knowledge.

R2

Considering that the readers may not be expert in the field, the authors should place their work within the framework of bibliometrics. Which are the goals of bibliometrics studies? In doing so, the authors can also refer to some academic areas (e.g., [1], [2], [3]) for which the approach was considered.

To give greater clarity to the objective outlined in the research, proposed at the end of the methodological section, a series of research questions are raised to guide potential readers.

R2

2. Materials and Methods. Line 140. The main features of Scopus and Web of Science databases need be discussed.

Information is added, supported by other authors, on the main characteristics of both databases, which justify their choice as sources of information for the present study.

R2

Line 155. The type of databases available depends on the contracts signed by the University to which the researchers belong. Therefore, which databases were queried in performing the searches?

The question is answered in section 2.3. where the reason why the Scopus and Web of Science databases were chosen is explained, adding their importance to analyze and evaluate scientific activity

R2

Line 165. The authors should explain why they chose to analyze the time frame between 2012 and 2022. Furthermore, when was the data downloaded?

It is mentioned in the text that this period of time makes it possible to analyze the most recent research trends on the scientific literature.

R2

Regarding VOSViewer, the authors must indicate all the software parameters used (e.g., cluster resolution, minimum number of items for clusters). If default parameters were used, this must be specified. Please also indicate the software version used. Furthermore, credits for VOSViewer must be included.

It is explained that the default parameters of the software were used, in its version 1.6.18, citing the creators of the software, to give the respective credits

R2

3. Results. Considering that the authors included the discussion of the results in this section and not in a separate one, the title of the section will be changed to "Results and Discussions".

The name of the section is adjusted, according to the reviewer's indications

R2

Figures 6 and 7. Considering that the database used to perform the bibliometric investigation derives from the fusion of data extracted from two citation indexes (Scopus and WoS), how was the number of citations for journals and authors determined? Clarify this point.

The number of citations for journals and authors is determined from the moment the information is extracted from the data sources, since each database adds this field among the metadata.

R2

Line 273. Which keywords were chosen? 'Author keywords', 'Keyword plus' or both?

It is clarified that the keywords of the authors were chosen

R2

Figure 8. Why the authors chose to analyze data only from Scopus? Were Scopus data used for all processing done with VOSViewer or only for the network in Figure 8?  Please clarify.

The initial wording is corrected, mentioning that the graph includes keywords from the authors of the articles from both the Scopus database and Web of Science, which are the sources of information for the article.

R2

Which research lines identify the five clusters of Figure 8? It would be useful to identify them graphically with rectangles, naming them according to the line of research that each individual cluster represents. The authors will also discuss the degree of connection between each cluster and, therefore, between the different research lines.

A new figure is added, which allows to associate the different thematic lines from the clustering analysis, mentioning, in turn, the degree of relationship between the different thematic lines identified.

R2

Figure 11. How were the values included in the figure determined? Does the data derive from the processing done by VOSViewer?

This explanation is added in section 2.5, where it is explained that these analyzes were carried out using Microsoft Excel®

R2

4. Conclusions. The conclusions are just a summary of the Results. It is necessary to add some personal deductions and comments which also concern suggestions for the scientific community, policymakers and stakeholders. For example, which could be the future directions of the research? Which research lines should be strengthened? Suggestions are required to make the study useful for the scientific community thus improving the research in green chemistry.

Three new paragraphs are added with suggestions for future studies that include the identified thematic lines, consolidated concepts and emerging concepts in the field.

R2

Line 420-421. Avoid including the search query here.

Search query is removed, per reviewer's suggestion

R2

Finally, the authors will add 2-3 paragraphs indicating the limitations of the bibliometric analysis. [1] https://doi.org/10.1111/hir.12295 [medicine]. [2] https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10120482 [geosciences]. [3] https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043618 [energy]

4 paragraphs are added with limitations, taking as reference the sources suggested by the reviewer

Reviewer

Comment

Response

R1

 1.      Introduction: should contain information on how combined techniques of bibliometric and social network analysis have been used so far in the literature and how this study aims to help advance research and improve bibliometric reliability.

Two paragraphs are added explaining the way in which the scientific literature has made use of bibliometric analysis and social networks, as well as the way in which the present study contributes to the research.

R1

 2.      Methods: It is suggested to be structured in three parts: Data collection, Data Bibliometric Analysis, and Data Visualization.

For this specific case, the organization of the sections of the methodology is proposed according to the PRISMA statement, for literature reviews.

R1

 3.      Data collection: the query string should be selected very carefully.

For this specific case, the organization of the sections of the methodology is proposed according to the PRISMA statement, for literature reviews.

R1

 4.      Data collection: the exact applied query string and the exact number of articles retrieved should be given (articles better included in Supplementary material), and the exact date that the search was conducted needs also to be stated. The reason is that any application of the exact same query string at any subsequent time will yield, inevitably, a larger number of articles as the database does not provide the option to limit search results by an exact date.

Regarding the articles recovered, mention had already been made
in the data management section, where, according to the reviewer's instructions, the moment in which the search strategy was materialized is specified.

R1

 5.      Dominant effective collaborations between countries would also be of interest to be included in the analysis.

An additional graph is added on the scientific cooperation network between countries, analyzing the main relationships found, according to the reviewer's indications.

R1

 In order to revise the manuscript, authors are suggested to consider the following references:
 Sharma, S., & Demir, H. (2019). Green Chemistry in Scientific Literature: A Bibliometric Study and Research Trends (1st ed.). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003002352.
Urhan, B., Hoştut, S., Güdekli, İ.A. et al. Climate change and marketing: a bibliometric analysis of research from 1992 to 2022. Environ Sci Pollut Res (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-26071-9.
 Mishra, M., Sudarsan, D., Santos, C.A.G. et al. An overview of research on natural resources and indigenous communities: a bibliometric analysis based on Scopus database (1979–2020). Environ Monit Assess 193, 59 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-020-08793-2

The suggested bibliographical references are used for the review of the manuscript.

R2

Abstract.  At the end of the section, the authors will include a paragraph explaining who and why can benefit of the results of the study.

What is requested is added to the end of the abstract, without exceeding the maximum number of words allowed by the journal.

R2

Introduction. Line 37. Summarize the most important principles of green chemistry.

The 12 principles of green chemistry are added, supported by the source that mentions them

R2

At the end of the section, the authors will inform the readers whether previous bibliometric  studies on the topic of Green Chemistry are available in literature. If similar studies were already carried out, the authors will discuss which improvements their work bring.

A paragraph is added in the introductory section, where another bibliometric on Green Chemistry is mentioned, mentioning that the present study contributes to update the findings found, and increase existing knowledge.

R2

Considering that the readers may not be expert in the field, the authors should place their work within the framework of bibliometrics. Which are the goals of bibliometrics studies? In doing so, the authors can also refer to some academic areas (e.g., [1], [2], [3]) for which the approach was considered.

To give greater clarity to the objective outlined in the research, proposed at the end of the methodological section, a series of research questions are raised to guide potential readers.

R2

2. Materials and Methods. Line 140. The main features of Scopus and Web of Science databases need be discussed.

Information is added, supported by other authors, on the main characteristics of both databases, which justify their choice as sources of information for the present study.

R2

Line 155. The type of databases available depends on the contracts signed by the University to which the researchers belong. Therefore, which databases were queried in performing the searches?

The question is answered in section 2.3. where the reason why the Scopus and Web of Science databases were chosen is explained, adding their importance to analyze and evaluate scientific activity

R2

Line 165. The authors should explain why they chose to analyze the time frame between 2012 and 2022. Furthermore, when was the data downloaded?

It is mentioned in the text that this period of time makes it possible to analyze the most recent research trends on the scientific literature.

R2

Regarding VOSViewer, the authors must indicate all the software parameters used (e.g., cluster resolution, minimum number of items for clusters). If default parameters were used, this must be specified. Please also indicate the software version used. Furthermore, credits for VOSViewer must be included.

It is explained that the default parameters of the software were used, in its version 1.6.18, citing the creators of the software, to give the respective credits

R2

3. Results. Considering that the authors included the discussion of the results in this section and not in a separate one, the title of the section will be changed to "Results and Discussions".

The name of the section is adjusted, according to the reviewer's indications

R2

Figures 6 and 7. Considering that the database used to perform the bibliometric investigation derives from the fusion of data extracted from two citation indexes (Scopus and WoS), how was the number of citations for journals and authors determined? Clarify this point.

The number of citations for journals and authors is determined from the moment the information is extracted from the data sources, since each database adds this field among the metadata.

R2

Line 273. Which keywords were chosen? 'Author keywords', 'Keyword plus' or both?

It is clarified that the keywords of the authors were chosen

R2

Figure 8. Why the authors chose to analyze data only from Scopus? Were Scopus data used for all processing done with VOSViewer or only for the network in Figure 8?  Please clarify.

The initial wording is corrected, mentioning that the graph includes keywords from the authors of the articles from both the Scopus database and Web of Science, which are the sources of information for the article.

R2

Which research lines identify the five clusters of Figure 8? It would be useful to identify them graphically with rectangles, naming them according to the line of research that each individual cluster represents. The authors will also discuss the degree of connection between each cluster and, therefore, between the different research lines.

A new figure is added, which allows to associate the different thematic lines from the clustering analysis, mentioning, in turn, the degree of relationship between the different thematic lines identified.

R2

Figure 11. How were the values included in the figure determined? Does the data derive from the processing done by VOSViewer?

This explanation is added in section 2.5, where it is explained that these analyzes were carried out using Microsoft Excel®

R2

4. Conclusions. The conclusions are just a summary of the Results. It is necessary to add some personal deductions and comments which also concern suggestions for the scientific community, policymakers and stakeholders. For example, which could be the future directions of the research? Which research lines should be strengthened? Suggestions are required to make the study useful for the scientific community thus improving the research in green chemistry.

Three new paragraphs are added with suggestions for future studies that include the identified thematic lines, consolidated concepts and emerging concepts in the field.

R2

Line 420-421. Avoid including the search query here.

Search query is removed, per reviewer's suggestion

R2

Finally, the authors will add 2-3 paragraphs indicating the limitations of the bibliometric analysis. [1] https://doi.org/10.1111/hir.12295 [medicine]. [2] https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10120482 [geosciences]. [3] https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043618 [energy]

4 paragraphs are added with limitations, taking as reference the sources suggested by the reviewer