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University · Abhā · Saudi Arabia

King Khalid University

In research, King Khalid University stands highest in Physical Sciences (#146 of 12,888 worldwide), Health Sciences (#239 of 11,982 worldwide) and Engineering (#163 of 6,636 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Orthodontics, General Dentistry and Dentistry — Orthodontics is 7.2× its share of world research.

kku.edu.saROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#192
of 28,054 · #1,086 all time
Rank in Saudi Arabia
#3
of 98
Research works
15k
▲ 302% vs 2013–17
Citations
201k
13.8 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
27.1%
record average 16.5%
Open access
57%
world 28%

What is King Khalid University known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Physical SciencesDomain #146 of 12,888 28.7%4,349 #957
Health SciencesDomain #239 of 11,982 20.8%1,360 #986
EngineeringField #163 of 6,636 29.8%1,583 #958
Materials ScienceField #83 of 2,468 25.7%839 #549
Materials ChemistrySubfield #63 of 1,556 25.6%505 #452
MathematicsField #47 of 1,053 27.5%229 #580
DentistryField #17 of 367 15.4%195 #139
Health ProfessionsField #90 of 1,928 27.5%144 #461
Social SciencesDomain #596 of 10,521 27.2%1,041 #1524
Biomedical EngineeringSubfield #90 of 1,568 29.5%361 #504

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where King Khalid University sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022–2025. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Physical Sciences#957 #146
  2. Health Sciences#986 #239
  3. Engineering#958 #163
  4. Materials Science#549 #83
  5. Materials Chemistry#452 #63
  6. Mathematics#580 #47
  7. Dentistry#139 #17
  8. Health Professions#461 #90
  9. Social Sciences#1,524 #596
  10. Biomedical Engineering#504 #90
all time2022–2025, better2022–2025, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

What does King Khalid University specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Orthodontics takes 7.2× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. OrthodonticsSubfield · 60.7 works7.2×
  2. General DentistrySubfield · 23.5 works7.2×
  3. DentistryField · 194.8 works5.3×
  4. Oral SurgerySubfield · 76.1 works5.2×
  5. Modeling and SimulationSubfield · 54.1 works5.1×
  6. Electronic, Optical and Magnetic MaterialsSubfield · 153.7 works4.5×
  7. Ceramics and CompositesSubfield · 23.6 works4.5×
  8. Fluid Flow and Transfer ProcessesSubfield · 23.2 works4.0×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.77× its world share, 276 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.77× its world share, 308 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.68× its world share, 52 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.64× its world share, 78 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 2.65× its world share, 70 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 2.10× its world share, 55 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 2.88× its world share, 340 worksChemistryComputer Science: 1.06× its world share, 619 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.31× its world share, 36 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 2.72× its world share, 188 worksEnergyEngineering: 1.40× its world share, 1,583 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.79× its world share, 294 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 3.19× its world share, 839 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 2.58× its world share, 229 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 0.98× its world share, 164 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 5.33× its world share, 195 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.72× its world share, 144 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.68× its world share, 984 worksMedicineNursing: 0.89× its world share, 33 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.46× its world share, 5 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.69× its world share, 150 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.56× its world share, 137 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.00× its world share, 73 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.32× its world share, 52 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.82× its world share, 187 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.46× its world share, 441 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Dentistry, 5.3×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at King Khalid University?

Ranked on the composite score, Abubakr M. Idris, S. Saleem and Irfan Anjum Badruddin lead among researchers whose main affiliation is King Khalid University.

  1. 1 Abubakr M. Idris Saudi Arabia · #135,845 worldwide 429 citations · 39 works
  2. 2 S. Saleem Saudi Arabia · #147,753 worldwide 236 citations · 37 works
  3. 3 Irfan Anjum Badruddin Saudi Arabia · #217,873 worldwide 480 citations · 68 works
  4. 4 Mohamed Abdelghany Elkotb Saudi Arabia · #240,738 worldwide 121 citations · 21 works
  5. 5 Mohamed S. Hamdy Saudi Arabia · #270,377 worldwide 231 citations · 44 works
  6. 6 Syed Esam Mahmood Saudi Arabia · #274,065 worldwide 66 citations · 28 works
  7. 7 El Sayed Yousef Saudi Arabia · #274,972 worldwide 316 citations · 49 works
  8. 8 Javed Mallick Saudi Arabia · #275,916 worldwide 157 citations · 31 works
  9. 9 Ahmad Irfan Saudi Arabia · #327,695 worldwide 427 citations · 78 works
  10. 10 Shabbir Muhammad Saudi Arabia · #355,629 worldwide 339 citations · 74 works
All ranked researchers at King Khalid University

Which keywords describe research at King Khalid University?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Heat Transfer, Experimental Investigation, Nanomaterials, Applications, Thermal Conductivity, Review, Viscosity and Nanofluids.

▲ more of its work than of the world’s◆ about the world’s share▼ less than the world’s

Size is fractional works in 2022–2025 in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Heat Transfer435▲ 12×18 topics
  2. Machine Learning344▲ 1.40×89 topics
  3. Nanomaterials335▲ 4.2×20 topics
  4. Deep Learning314▲ 1.22×81 topics
  5. Experimental Investigation256▲ 32×4 topics
  6. Nanoparticles221▲ 2.3×44 topics
  7. Applications199▲ 9.6×8 topics
  8. Graphene195▲ 3.8×12 topics
  9. Biomedical Applications190▲ 2.1×36 topics
  10. Thermal Conductivity181▲ 16×7 topics
  11. Review168▲ 18×5 topics
  12. Viscosity162▲ 30×3 topics
  13. Nanofluids161▲ 26×2 topics
  14. Convective Transport160▲ 46×1 topic
  15. Enhancement160▲ 46×1 topic
  16. Nanostructures155▲ 5.1×16 topics
  17. Nanocomposites154▲ 2.5×22 topics
  18. Synthesis149▲ 5.3×35 topics
  19. Energy Storage143▲ 2.9×11 topics
  20. Nanocrystals141▲ 6.9×5 topics
  21. Semiconductors135▲ 5.8×5 topics
  22. Semiconductor131▲ 5.1×6 topics
  23. Efficiency127▲ 5.6×7 topics
  24. Water Splitting121▲ 4.4×4 topics
  25. Medicinal Chemistry116▲ 5.5×13 topics
  26. Metal-Organic Frameworks110▲ 3.5×6 topics
  27. Solar Energy101▲ 4.2×5 topics
  28. Anticancer Agents99▲ 8.7×12 topics
  29. Crystal Growth98▲ 4.6×12 topics
  30. Visible Light96▲ 5.5×3 topics
  31. Numerical Modeling94▲ 12×2 topics
  32. CFD Analysis92▲ 27×2 topics
  33. Friction Factor91▲ 28×1 topic
  34. Solar Air Heater91▲ 28×1 topic
  35. Green Synthesis85▲ 5.9×5 topics
  36. Photovoltaics77▲ 6.2×4 topics
  37. Nonlinear Equations76▲ 7.8×5 topics
  38. Turbulent Flows76▲ 10.0×3 topics
  39. Vortex Dynamics70▲ 8.0×4 topics
  40. Fluid Mechanics69▲ 12×2 topics

Which research topics does King Khalid University publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Nanofluid Flow and Heat Transfer, Heat Transfer Mechanisms, Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques and Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows.

Nanofluid Flow and Heat …160Nanofluid Flow and Heat Transfer: 160 fractional worksHeat Transfer Mechanisms: 91 fractional worksAdvanced Photocatalysis …69Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques: 69 fractional worksFluid Dynamics and Turbu…68Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows: 68 fractional worksPerovskite Materials and Applications: 52 fractional worksHeat Transfer and Optimization: 52 fractional worksSynthesis and biological…51Synthesis and biological activity: 51 fractional worksChalcogenide Semiconductor Thin Films: 44 fractional worksGas Sensing Nanomaterials and Sensors: 42 fractional worksFractional Differential Equations Solutions: 41 fractional works
Biomedical EngineeringMechanical EngineeringRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the EnvironmentComputational Mechanics3 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Nanofluid Flow and Heat Transfer Biomedical Engineering 160 works
  2. 2 Heat Transfer Mechanisms Mechanical Engineering 91 works
  3. 3 Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment 69 works
  4. 4 Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows Computational Mechanics 68 works
  5. 5 Perovskite Materials and Applications Electrical and Electronic Engineering 52 works
  6. 6 Heat Transfer and Optimization Mechanical Engineering 52 works
  7. 7 Synthesis and biological activity Organic Chemistry 51 works
  8. 8 Chalcogenide Semiconductor Thin Films Electrical and Electronic Engineering 44 works
  9. 9 Gas Sensing Nanomaterials and Sensors Electrical and Electronic Engineering 42 works
  10. 10 Fractional Differential Equations Solutions Modeling and Simulation 41 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world’s own shares — the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available56.8%not open43.2%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors58.5%domestic only41.5%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has King Khalid University's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 302% higher than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

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

Other research institutions in Abhā

All research institutions in Abhā

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.