Editor Note to article entitled “Green tea and tulsi extracts as efficient green corrosion inhibitor for aluminum alloy in alkaline medium” [Heliyon 9 (2023) e16504]

An investigation conducted on behalf of the journal by Elsevier's Research Integrity & Publishing Ethics team has determined that the authors were requested by one of the reviewers to insert redundant and irrelevant references to their paper during the peer-review process. As these citations were requested by an individual who could influence the decision to accept the article, the authors are not considered at fault for the addition of these citations. The Editors have determined that the citations added to the paper at the request of the reviewer does not offer a balanced reflection of the literature.