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Field · Physical Sciences

Chemical Engineering research

Chemical Engineering is a field of the Physical Sciences. Science Explorer counts 483k research works in it since 1950. 16.8% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.

In short: branch of science that applies physical sciences and life sciences together with applied mathematics and economics to produce, transform, transport, and properly use chemicals, materials and energy.

Research works
483k
fractional, since 1950
In the world top 10%
81k
per year above
Top-10% rate
16.8%
share of its works in the world top 10%
Topics
13
Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
+10%
the tick is no change

What is Chemical Engineering research about, and what is growing?

By the world's output in 2019–23, its most used keywords are Catalysis, Ion-Selective Electrodes, Optical Sensors, Carbon Dioxide, Hydrogenation, Chemical Kinetics. Gaining share since 2009–13: Ammonia Synthesis, Electrocatalysts, Chemical Synthesis, Cyclic Carbonates, Carbon Dioxide. Losing share: Density, Viscosity, Bioreactors, Odor Control.

▲ gaining share of this field◆ holding its share▼ losing share

Size is the world's fractional works in 2019–23 in the topics tagged with each word; colour compares the word's share of this field with 2009–13. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 30 words, with their numbers
  1. Catalysis33k▲ 1.18×4 topics
  2. Ion-Selective Electrodes17k▼ 0.84×1 topic
  3. Optical Sensors17k▼ 0.84×1 topic
  4. Carbon Dioxide15k▲ 1.39×2 topics
  5. Hydrogenation15k▲ 1.39×2 topics
  6. Chemical Kinetics12k◆ 1.10×1 topic
  7. Combustion12k◆ 1.10×1 topic
  8. Ionic Liquids11k◆ 0.99×2 topics
  9. Dehydrogenation9,901◆ 0.87×1 topic
  10. Oxidative9,901◆ 0.87×1 topic
  11. Green Chemistry8,219◆ 1.10×1 topic
  12. Solvents8,219◆ 1.10×1 topic
  13. Chemical Synthesis7,898▲ 1.48×1 topic
  14. Cyclic Carbonates7,898▲ 1.48×1 topic
  15. Ammonia Synthesis7,232▲ 1.84×1 topic
  16. Electrocatalysts7,232▲ 1.84×1 topic
  17. Catalytic6,980▲ 1.30×1 topic
  18. Renewable Fuels6,980▲ 1.30×1 topic
  19. Complex Fluids4,513▼ 0.79×1 topic
  20. Rheology4,513▼ 0.79×1 topic
  21. Aqueous Two-Phase Systems3,183▼ 0.79×1 topic
  22. Protein Separation3,183▼ 0.79×1 topic
  23. Density2,367▼ 0.58×1 topic
  24. Viscosity2,367▼ 0.58×1 topic
  25. Bioreactors2,134▼ 0.75×1 topic
  26. Odor Control2,134▼ 0.75×1 topic
  27. Electrochemical Reduction1,531◆ 1.15×1 topic
  28. Molten Salt Electrolysis1,531◆ 1.15×1 topic
  29. Chemical Management1,478▼ 0.85×1 topic
  30. Laboratory Safety1,478▼ 0.85×1 topic

Which countries lead Chemical Engineering research?

On research quality in 2022–2025, China, the United States and India rank highest in Chemical Engineering. By volume, China and the United States publish the most (26k and 6.8k works in 2022–2025).

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 China · #2 all time 20.3% top 10% · 26k works
  2. 2 United States · #1 all time 13.1% top 10% · 6.8k works
  3. 3 India · #7 all time 12.7% top 10% · 5.8k works
  4. 4 United Kingdom · #4 all time 16.2% top 10% · 1.7k works
  5. 5 Germany · #3 all time 11.2% top 10% · 2.8k works
  6. 6 South Korea · #12 all time 16.9% top 10% · 2.1k works
  7. 7 Japan · #5 all time 7.7% top 10% · 2.5k works
  8. 8 Australia · #13 all time 21.7% top 10% · 779 works
  9. 9 France · #6 all time 10.4% top 10% · 1.9k works
  10. 10 Italy · #9 all time 14.4% top 10% · 1.5k works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 45 countries ranked in Chemical Engineering. Composite of field-normalised excellence (50%), output (30%) and citations (20%); the bracket is the all-time rank.

All countries ranked in Chemical Engineering

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 China 26k works
  2. 2 United States 6.8k works
  3. 3 India 5.8k works
  4. 4 Germany 2.8k works
  5. 5 Russia 2.5k works
  6. 6 Japan 2.5k works
  7. 7 South Korea 2.1k works
  8. 8 France 1.9k works
  9. 9 United Kingdom 1.7k works
  10. 10 Italy 1.5k works

How concentrated that is

The same countries as shares of everything the list above accounts for. A node where two countries do two thirds of the work and one spread evenly across twelve read alike as a ranking and not at all alike here.

China: 48.8%United States: 12.6%India: 10.8%Germany: 5.1%6 others listed: 22.7%49%largest
China26k · 48.8%United States6,842 · 12.6%India5,840 · 10.8%Germany2,786 · 5.1%6 others listed12k · 22.7%

Shares of the rows listed above, not of the whole node.

Which institutions lead Chemical Engineering research?

Chinese Academy of Sciences (China) ranks first in Chemical Engineering on research quality in 2022–2025, followed by Tsinghua University and University of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Chinese Academy of Sciences China · Beijing · #1 all time 23.1% top 10% · 697 works
  2. 2 Tsinghua University China · Beijing · #4 all time 27.2% top 10% · 407 works
  3. 3 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences China · Beijing · #12 all time 21.8% top 10% · 413 works
  4. 4 Tianjin University China · Tianjin · #7 all time 20.8% top 10% · 496 works
  5. 5 University of Science and Technology of China China · Hefei · #8 all time 24.7% top 10% · 298 works
  6. 6 Xi'an Jiaotong University China · Xi'an · #40 all time 22.8% top 10% · 419 works
  7. 7 Zhejiang University China · Hangzhou · #24 all time 21.2% top 10% · 336 works
  8. 8 Shanghai Jiao Tong University China · Shanghai · #57 all time 23.3% top 10% · 358 works
  9. 9 Sichuan University China · Chengdu · #61 all time 21.1% top 10% · 290 works
  10. 10 Nankai University China · Tianjin · #39 all time 23.2% top 10% · 201 works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 205 institutions above the floor of 40 fractional works in Chemical Engineering.

Top 100 Chemical Engineering institutions

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Chinese Academy of Sciences China 697 works
  2. 2 Tianjin University China 496 works
  3. 3 Xi'an Jiaotong University China 419 works
  4. 4 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences China 413 works
  5. 5 Tsinghua University China 407 works
  6. 6 Shanghai Jiao Tong University China 358 works
  7. 7 Zhejiang University China 336 works
  8. 8 East China University of Science and Technology China 329 works
  9. 9 University of Science and Technology of China China 298 works
  10. 10 Sichuan University China 290 works

Who are the leading researchers in Chemical Engineering?

Among the most productive authors in Chemical Engineering, Jens K. Nørskov, William L. Jorgensen and Donald G. Truhlar rank highest on the composite score.

  1. 1 Jens K. Nørskov Denmark · #84 worldwide 9.8k citations · 144 works
  2. 2 William L. Jorgensen United States · #209 worldwide 4.5k citations · 119 works
  3. 3 Donald G. Truhlar United States · #255 worldwide 8.4k citations · 315 works
  4. 4 P. G. de Gennes France · #608 worldwide 4.3k citations · 105 works
  5. 5 Thomas F. Jaramillo United States · #1,020 worldwide 5.5k citations · 98 works
  6. 6 Paul J. Flory United States · #1,089 worldwide 3.7k citations · 100 works
  7. 7 Michaël Grätzel Switzerland · #1,491 worldwide 13k citations · 436 works
  8. 8 John D. Ferry United States · #1,803 worldwide 2.1k citations · 92 works
  9. 9 Ib Chorkendorff Denmark · #1,950 worldwide 3.7k citations · 136 works
  10. 10 Nathan S. Lewis United States · #2,550 worldwide 3.4k citations · 156 works

Re-ranked on the composite score from the 5,562 highest-output authors in Chemical Engineering. Identities come from OpenAlex author disambiguation, which occasionally merges or splits people.

Top 100 Chemical Engineering researchers

Where is Chemical Engineering research done?

The largest centres of Chemical Engineering research in 2022–2025 are Beijing (China), Shanghai (China), Tianjin (China) and Nanjing (China). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Ivanovo, Rayong and South Park Township.

Largest cities, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Beijing China 4.6k works
  2. 2 Shanghai China 1.8k works
  3. 3 Tianjin China 1.2k works
  4. 4 Nanjing China 1.2k works
  5. 5 Xi'an China 1k works
  6. 6 Hangzhou China 1k works
  7. 7 Moscow Russia 924 works
  8. 8 Wuhan China 914 works
  9. 9 Seoul South Korea 803 works
  10. 10 Dalian China 758 works

Where it is the local speciality

  1. IvanovoRU · 86.8 works13×
  2. RayongTH · 21.4 works12×
  3. South Park TownshipUS · 37.2 works12×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Chemical Engineering than the world average.

See Chemical Engineering on the map

Chemical Engineering research by country

The best places for Chemical Engineering research inside each country, with that country's researchers and world standing.

Where is the best place to study Chemical Engineering?

Among universities, judged by research, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Lanzhou Jiaotong University and East China University of Science and Technology score highest, combining excellence, specialisation, size, growth and international reach. Research strength is one signal when choosing where to study; it does not measure teaching.

0%20%40%mean 21.83%fractional works in this node (log) →share in the world top 10% →King Abdullah University of Science and Technology: 190, 23.4%Lanzhou Jiaotong University: 58, 39.0%East China University of Science and Technology: 329, 15.3%Qingdao University of Science and Technology: 244, 16.4%Tianjin University: 496, 20.8%Beijing University of Chemical Technology: 263, 17.5%Dalian University: 144, 18.5%University of Chinese Academy of Sciences: 413, 21.8%Xi'an Jiaotong University: 419, 22.8%King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals: 129, 22.8%Lanzhou Jiaotong Uni…King Abdullah Univer…Qingdao University o…East China Universit…
above the meannear itbelow it

One dot per university in the table below. The upper left is the interesting corner: small places doing unusually strong work.

#UniversityScoreTop 10%SpecialisationWorksGrowth
1King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Saudi Arabia 74.623.4%9.4×190 +235.2%
2Lanzhou Jiaotong University China 53.839.0%3.4×58 +165.0%
3East China University of Science and Technology China 53.115.3%9.2×329 -3.7%
4Qingdao University of Science and Technology China 53.116.4%9.2×244 +20.7%
5Tianjin University China 53.020.8%5.8×496 +13.3%
6Beijing University of Chemical Technology China 50.817.5%8.4×263 -14.2%
7Dalian University China 50.518.5%8.4×144 +36.2%
8University of Chinese Academy of Sciences China 50.221.8%3.5×413 +71.3%
9Xi'an Jiaotong University China 49.822.8%3.6×419 +50.4%
10King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Saudi Arabia 49.722.8%5.2×129 +53.5%

Universities only. Score blends excellence (30%), specialisation (25%), size (20%), growth (15%) and international reach (10%), 2015–2022; growth compares 2010–14 with 2015–19.

Is Chemical Engineering research growing?

Output in 2018–2022 was 10% higher than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2025. The fastest-growing topics are Carbon dioxide utilization in catalysis, Catalysts for Methane Reforming and Ionic liquids properties and applications.

19801990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Which topics inside it are moving

Growth and decline on one axis around a shared zero. Two lists side by side hide the thing that matters: whether the growth dwarfs the decline, or the other way round.

  1. Carbon dioxide utilization in catalysis+117%
  2. Catalysts for Methane Reforming+90%
  3. Ionic liquids properties and applications+85%
  4. Advanced Combustion Engine Technologies+80%
  5. Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction+75%
  6. Molten salt chemistry and electrochemical processes+71%
  7. Thermodynamic properties of mixtures-28%
← shrinkingno changegrowing →

Growth in output from 2005–09 to 2015–19. Every topic is a page of its own.

What does Chemical Engineering include?

Analytical Chemistry and…110kAnalytical Chemistry and Sensors: 110k fractional worksCatalysis and Oxidation Reactions: 64k fractional worksAdvanced Combustion Engine Technologies: 53k fractional worksRheology and Fluid Dynamics Studies: 37k fractional worksIonic liquids properties and applications: 36k fractional worksCarbon dioxide utilization in catalysis: 32k fractional worksThermodynamic properties of mixtures: 30k fractional worksCatalysts for Methane Reforming: 30k fractional worksAmmonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction: 29k fractional worksChemical and Physical Properties in Aqueous Solutions: 27k fractional worksOdor and Emission Control Technologies: 14k fractional worksChemical Safety and Risk Management: 11k fractional works

Area is fractional works in that topic. Every name below is a page of its own.