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Government institution · Pretoria · South Africa

Water Research Commission

In research, Water Research Commission stands highest in Physical Sciences (#13,272 of 17,446 worldwide), over all time.

wrc.org.zaROR OpenAlex
World rank, all time
#22,749
of 34,923
Rank in South Africa
#86
of 126
Research works
274
▲ 12% vs 2018-21
Citations
4.2k
15.4 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
13.8%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
0.90×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
42%
world 40%
International
21%
world 18%
Water Research Commission

What is Water Research Commission known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, over all time, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorks
Physical SciencesDomain #13,272 of 17,446 6.5%159

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Water Research Commission 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 average mark, because the average differs by field (from about 6% in Dentistry to 21% in Economics).

Which fields of science does Water Research Commission work in?

In 2022-now, 48% of research at Water Research Commission is in Physical Sciences, 21% in Life Sciences. Its largest fields are Environmental Science (34%), Agricultural and Biological Sciences (18%), Social Sciences (12%). It does 1.4× the world's share of Life Sciences.

Physical Sciences: 23 fractional works · 48.0% of its workEnvironmental Science: 16 fractional works · 34.0% of its workWater Science and Technology: 3 fractional works · 7.4% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 3 fractional works · 6.0% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 2 fractional works · 4.2% of its workPollution: 2 fractional works · 3.2% of its workEnvironmental Chemistry: 1 fractional works · 3.0% of its workEnvironmental Engineering: 1 fractional works · 2.4% of its workManagement, Monitoring, Policy and Law: 1 fractional works · 2.3% of its workEcology: 1 fractional works · 2.2% of its workNature and Landscape Conservation: 1 fractional works · 1.5% of its workHealth, Toxicology and Mutagenesis: 1 fractional works · 1.4% of its workEcological Modeling: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEngineering: 4 fractional works · 8.9% of its workOcean Engineering: 2 fractional works · 3.6% of its workCivil and Structural Engineering: 1 fractional works · 2.1% of its workBuilding and Construction: 1 fractional works · 1.2% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.8% of its workControl and Systems Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.7% of its workAutomotive Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 1 fractional works · 2.1% of its workGeochemistry and Petrology: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workEarth-Surface Processes: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workAtmospheric Science: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workGeology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workComputer Science: 1 fractional works · 1.2% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 0 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workChemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.7% of its workAnalytical Chemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.7% of its workMaterials Science: 0 fractional works · 0.7% of its workMaterials Chemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPolymers and Plastics: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workEnergy: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEnergy Engineering and Power Technology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workLife Sciences: 10 fractional works · 21.2% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 9 fractional works · 18.5% of its workSoil Science: 2 fractional works · 4.5% of its workGeneral Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 2 fractional works · 4.2% of its workEcology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics: 2 fractional works · 3.7% of its workPlant Science: 2 fractional works · 3.5% of its workFood Science: 0 fractional works · 0.8% of its workAquatic Science: 0 fractional works · 0.7% of its workInsect Science: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workAgronomy and Crop Science: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workForestry: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 1 fractional works · 1.9% of its workMolecular Biology: 1 fractional works · 1.3% of its workBiotechnology: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workImmunology: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workNeuroscience: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workCognitive Neuroscience: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSocial Sciences: 10 fractional works · 20.5% of its workSocial Sciences: 6 fractional works · 11.8% of its workSociology and Political Science: 2 fractional works · 4.1% of its workEducation: 2 fractional works · 3.2% of its workLaw: 1 fractional works · 2.2% of its workPolitical Science and International Relations: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workAnthropology: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSafety Research: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workTransportation: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPublic Administration: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workUrban Studies: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workArts and Humanities: 2 fractional works · 3.6% of its workHistory and Philosophy of Science: 1 fractional works · 2.1% of its workReligious studies: 0 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 1 fractional works · 3.0% of its workMarketing: 0 fractional works · 0.9% of its workManagement of Technology and Innovation: 0 fractional works · 0.8% of its workStrategy and Management: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workBusiness and International Management: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workOrganizational Behavior and Human Resource Management: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 1 fractional works · 1.7% of its workGeneral Economics, Econometrics and Finance: 0 fractional works · 0.7% of its workFinance: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workPsychology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDevelopmental and Educational Psychology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workHealth Sciences: 5 fractional works · 10.3% of its workMedicine: 3 fractional works · 6.6% of its workInfectious Diseases: 1 fractional works · 1.6% of its workPublic Health, Environmental and Occupational Health: 1 fractional works · 1.4% of its workPediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health: 0 fractional works · 0.8% of its workHepatology: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workPharmacology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workCardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDermatology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workHealth Informatics: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workOrthopedics and Sports Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workRadiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workNursing: 1 fractional works · 2.2% of its workNutrition and Dietetics: 1 fractional works · 2.2% of its workHealth Professions: 1 fractional works · 1.2% of its workGeneral Health Professions: 0 fractional works · 0.8% of its workSpeech and Hearing: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDentistry: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workGeneral Dentistry: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workALL ITS WORKWater ResearchCommission47fractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences21%Physical Sciences48%Health Sciences10%Social Sciences21%

Each ring splits the one inside it: the four domains of science, their fields, their subfields. Size is fractional works in 2022-now. Every slice is a page; the interactive view zooms down to single topics and colours each by how much more of it this institution does than the world.

Its 4 domains and 20 fields, with their numbers
    1. Environmental Science1634.0%
    2. Engineering48.9%
    3. Earth and Planetary Sciences12.1%
    4. Computer Science11.2%
    5. Chemistry00.7%
    6. Materials Science00.7%
    7. Energy00.4%
    1. Agricultural and Biological Sciences918.5%
    2. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology11.9%
    3. Immunology and Microbiology00.5%
    4. Neuroscience00.4%
    1. Social Sciences611.8%
    2. Arts and Humanities23.6%
    3. Business, Management and Accounting13.0%
    4. Economics, Econometrics and Finance11.7%
    5. Psychology00.4%
    1. Medicine36.6%
    2. Nursing12.2%
    3. Health Professions11.2%
    4. Dentistry00.4%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

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: 3.90× its world share, 9 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.35× its world share, 1 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.47× its world share, 0 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.22× its world share, 0 worksNeuroscienceChemistry: 0.45× its world share, 0 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.15× its world share, 1 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 1.33× its world share, 1 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.39× its world share, 0 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.60× its world share, 4 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 6.85× its world share, 16 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.19× its world share, 0 worksMaterials ScienceDentistry: 0.73× its world share, 0 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.45× its world share, 1 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.34× its world share, 3 worksMedicineNursing: 4.41× its world share, 1 worksNursingArts and Humanities: 1.24× its world share, 2 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.94× its world share, 1 worksBusiness, Management…Economics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.80× its world share, 1 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.12× its world share, 0 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.94× its world share, 6 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Environmental Science, 6.8×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 20 fields, with their numbers
  1. Environmental Science6.85×16 works
  2. Nursing4.41×1 works
  3. Agricultural and Biological Sciences3.90×9 works
  4. Earth and Planetary Sciences1.33×1 works
  5. Arts and Humanities1.24×2 works
  6. Business, Management and Accounting0.94×1 works
  7. Social Sciences0.94×6 works
  8. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.80×1 works
  9. Dentistry0.73×0 works
  10. Engineering0.60×4 works
  11. Immunology and Microbiology0.47×0 works
  12. Chemistry0.45×0 works
  13. Health Professions0.45×1 works
  14. Energy0.39×0 works
  15. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology0.35×1 works
  16. Medicine0.34×3 works
  17. Neuroscience0.22×0 works
  18. Materials Science0.19×0 works
  19. Computer Science0.15×1 works
  20. Psychology0.12×0 works

Who are the top researchers at Water Research Commission?

Ranked on the quality score, Sylvester Mpandeli, Luxon Nhamo and Stanley Liphadzi lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Water Research Commission.

  1. 1 Sylvester Mpandeli South Africa · #83,244 worldwide 3.3k citations · 83 works
  2. 2 Luxon Nhamo South Africa · #86,501 worldwide 4.2k citations · 145 works
  3. 3 Stanley Liphadzi South Africa · #371,305 worldwide 1.3k citations · 43 works
  4. 4 Eunice Ubomba‐Jaswa South Africa · #1,267,411 worldwide 2.2k citations · 53 works
  5. 5 Dhesigen Naidoo South Africa · #1,292,487 worldwide 1.2k citations · 54 works
  6. 6 Samkelisiwe Nosipho Hlophe-Ginindza South Africa · #1,358,947 worldwide 339 citations · 21 works
  7. 7 Sylvester Mpandeli South Africa · #1,678,696 worldwide 310 citations · 21 works
  8. 8 Inga Jacobs South Africa · #2,459,864 worldwide 266 citations · 15 works
  9. 9 Gerhard R. Backeberg South Africa · #2,681,530 worldwide 533 citations · 34 works
  10. 10 Jay Bhagwan South Africa · #2,945,561 worldwide 665 citations · 62 works
All ranked researchers at Water Research Commission

What are the most cited papers from Water Research Commission?

The most cited paper from Water Research Commission is "Current state of knowledge regarding the world’s wetlands and their future under global climate change: a synthesis" (Wolfgang Johannes Junk, Shuqing An, C. Max Finlayson et al., 2012), with 828 citations. Next come "Hydrochemical characteristics of aquifers near Sutherland in the Western Karoo, South Africa" (477) and "Climate Change Impacts on Water and Agriculture Sectors in Southern Africa: Threats and Opportunities for Sustainable Development" (307).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 Current state of knowledge regarding the world’s wetlands and their future under global climate change: a synthesis Wolfgang Johannes Junk, Shuqing An, C. Max Finlayson et al. · Aquatic Sciences Open access 29 Oct 2012 828
2 Hydrochemical characteristics of aquifers near Sutherland in the Western Karoo, South Africa Sabirah Adams, R Titus, Kevin Pietersen et al. · Journal of Hydrology 2001 477
3 Climate Change Impacts on Water and Agriculture Sectors in Southern Africa: Threats and Opportunities for Sustainable Development Charles Nhemachena, Luxon Nhamo, Greenwell Collins Matchaya et al. · Water Open access 24 Sep 2020 307
4 The Water-Energy-Food Nexus: Climate Risks and Opportunities in Southern Africa Luxon Nhamo, Bekithemba Ndlela, Charles Nhemachena et al. · Water Open access 27 Apr 2018 230
5 An integrative analytical model for the water-energy-food nexus: South Africa case study Luxon Nhamo, Tafadzwanashe Mabhaudhi, Sylvester Mpandeli et al. · Environmental Science & Policy Open access 27 Apr 2020 213
All 60 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Water Research Commission?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Climate Change, Sustainability, Environmental Impact, Water Scarcity, Global Warming, Water Resources, Food Security and Agriculture.

▲ 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-now 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. Climate Change11▲ 8.5×33 topics
  2. Sustainability7▲ 6.2×21 topics
  3. Environmental Impact4▲ 4.9×14 topics
  4. Water Scarcity3▲ 78×2 topics
  5. Global Warming3▲ 14×6 topics
  6. Water Resources3▲ 23×4 topics
  7. Food Security2▲ 9.5×5 topics
  8. Sustainable Development2▲ 3.1×10 topics
  9. Agriculture2▲ 12×3 topics
  10. Policy2▲ 21×4 topics
  11. Remote Sensing2▲ 3.6×10 topics
  12. Vulnerability2▲ 19×3 topics
  13. Globalization2▲ 2.1×6 topics
  14. Life Cycle Assessment2▲ 14×2 topics
  15. Resource Management2▲ 24×2 topics
  16. Smallholder Farmers2▲ 19×4 topics
  17. Sustainable Agriculture2▲ 13×4 topics
  18. Adaptation2▲ 13×6 topics
  19. Nexus2▲ 123×1 topic
  20. Social Networks2▲ 14×2 topics
  21. Sustainability Assessment2▲ 28×3 topics
  22. Urbanization2▲ 9.6×3 topics
  23. Water2▲ 71×1 topic
  24. Water Management2▲ 30×2 topics
  25. Biodiversity Conservation2▲ 9.6×8 topics
  26. Decentralized Treatment2▲ 178×1 topic
  27. Public Perception2▲ 28×2 topics
  28. Wastewater Reuse2▲ 178×1 topic
  29. Rural Development2▲ 9.9×4 topics
  30. Crop Production2▲ 29×1 topic
  31. Extreme Weather2▲ 98×1 topic
  32. Reservoir Operation2▲ 96×1 topic
  33. Water Demand2▲ 96×1 topic
  34. Soil Moisture1▲ 40×2 topics
  35. Deficit Irrigation1▲ 112×1 topic
  36. Land Use Change1▲ 9.0×3 topics
  37. Water Use Efficiency1▲ 81×1 topic
  38. Agricultural Innovation1▲ 57×1 topic
  39. Livelihood Diversification1▲ 85×1 topic
  40. Agricultural Sustainability1▲ 22×2 topics

Which research topics does Water Research Commission publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies, Wastewater Treatment and Reuse, Climate change impacts on agriculture and Water resources management and optimization.

Water-Energy-Food Nexus …2Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies: 2 fractional worksWastewater Treatment and…2Wastewater Treatment and Reuse: 2 fractional worksClimate change impacts o…2Climate change impacts on agriculture: 2 fractional worksWater resources manageme…2Water resources management and optimization: 2 fractional worksIrrigation Practices and Water Management: 1 fractional worksAgricultural Innovations and Practices: 1 fractional worksHistorical Studies and S…1Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis: 1 fractional worksSocial and Educational S…1Social and Educational Sciences: 1 fractional worksChild Nutrition and Wate…1Child Nutrition and Water Access: 1 fractional worksSustainable Agricultural…1Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis: 1 fractional works
Water Science and TechnologyIndustrial and Manufacturing EngineeringEcology, Evolution, Behavior and SystematicsOcean Engineering6 others

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

  1. 1 Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies Water Science and Technology 2 works
  2. 2 Wastewater Treatment and Reuse Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering 2 works
  3. 3 Climate change impacts on agriculture Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics 2 works
  4. 4 Water resources management and optimization Ocean Engineering 2 works
  5. 5 Irrigation Practices and Water Management Soil Science 1 works
  6. 6 Agricultural Innovations and Practices General Agricultural and Biological Sciences 1 works
  7. 7 Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis History and Philosophy of Science 1 works
  8. 8 Social and Educational Sciences Education 1 works
  9. 9 Child Nutrition and Water Access Nutrition and Dietetics 1 works
  10. 10 Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis Environmental Chemistry 1 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 available42.4%not open57.6%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors20.8%domestic only79.2%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Water Research Commission's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 12% higher than in 2018-2021.

still counting1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

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

Its share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share: all of science grows. This is Water Research Commission as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.00018% in 2024.

still counting0.0010%0.0020%Water Research Commission0.00021% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Water Research Commission over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

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Water Research Commission on Science Explorer

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