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Subfield · Environmental Science

Water Science and Technology research

Water Science and Technology is a subfield of Environmental Science. Science Explorer counts 504k research works in it since 1950. 16.5% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.

In short: emphasis of groundwater and surface water in the understanding of water resource systems.

Research works
504k
fractional, since 1950
In the world top 10%
83k
per year above
Top-10% rate
16.5%
share of its works in the world top 10%
Topics
24
Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
+32%
the tick is no change

What is Water Science and Technology research about, and what is growing?

By the world's output in 2019–23, its most used keywords are Climate Change, Wastewater Treatment, Remote Sensing, Heavy Metals, Adsorption, Water Resources. Gaining share since 2009–13: Pollution, Xylitol Toxicity, Nexus, Water, Advanced Oxidation Processes. Losing share: Erosion Control, Sustainability, Environmental Impact, Water Resources.

▲ 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 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Climate Change28k▼ 0.64×5 topics
  2. Wastewater Treatment22k▲ 1.69×4 topics
  3. Remote Sensing22k▼ 0.56×4 topics
  4. Heavy Metals22k▲ 1.69×3 topics
  5. Adsorption22k▲ 1.38×2 topics
  6. Water Resources21k▼ 0.49×3 topics
  7. Contaminant Removal19k▲ 1.59×1 topic
  8. Surface Area19k▲ 1.59×1 topic
  9. Land Use Change19k◆ 1.15×2 topics
  10. Hydrological Modeling18k▲ 1.16×1 topic
  11. Model Evaluation18k▲ 1.16×1 topic
  12. Water Treatment18k◆ 1.12×4 topics
  13. Environmental Impact16k▼ 0.43×5 topics
  14. Water Quality Monitoring16k◆ 1.15×2 topics
  15. Desalination15k▲ 1.62×1 topic
  16. Membrane Technology15k▲ 1.62×1 topic
  17. Environmental Monitoring14k▲ 1.27×2 topics
  18. Aquaculture13k▲ 1.25×1 topic
  19. Sensor Networks13k▲ 1.25×1 topic
  20. Sustainability12k▼ 0.41×6 topics
  21. Resource Management12k▲ 1.34×3 topics
  22. Multivariate Statistical Techniques11k▲ 1.31×1 topic
  23. Water Quality Index11k▲ 1.31×1 topic
  24. Advanced Oxidation Processes9,096▲ 1.71×1 topic
  25. Oxidation Kinetics9,096▲ 1.71×1 topic
  26. Nexus8,172▲ 1.91×1 topic
  27. Water8,172▲ 1.91×1 topic
  28. Erosion Control8,103▼ 0.29×2 topics
  29. Sustainable Development7,604▲ 1.33×2 topics
  30. Environmental Conservation7,331▲ 1.38×1 topic
  31. Hydrographic Basins7,331▲ 1.38×1 topic
  32. Flotation7,200▼ 0.81×1 topic
  33. Nanobubbles7,200▼ 0.81×1 topic
  34. Water Quality5,004▼ 0.72×4 topics
  35. Groundwater3,675▼ 0.70×2 topics
  36. Health Effects3,440▼ 0.58×2 topics
  37. Drinking Water3,028▼ 0.76×1 topic
  38. Fluoride3,028▼ 0.76×1 topic
  39. Pollution2,971▲ 3.6×1 topic
  40. Xylitol Toxicity2,971▲ 3.6×1 topic

Which countries lead Water Science and Technology research?

On research quality in 2022–2025, China, India and the United States rank highest in Water Science and Technology. By volume, China and India publish the most (30k and 10k works in 2022–2025).

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 China · #1 all time 22.3% top 10% · 30k works
  2. 2 India · #3 all time 15.5% top 10% · 10k works
  3. 3 United States · #2 all time 14.8% top 10% · 7.5k works
  4. 4 Saudi Arabia · #16 all time 27.0% top 10% · 1.4k works
  5. 5 Australia · #5 all time 22.0% top 10% · 1.4k works
  6. 6 Iran · #7 all time 18.4% top 10% · 2.6k works
  7. 7 Egypt · #21 all time 21.7% top 10% · 1.6k works
  8. 8 United Kingdom · #4 all time 18.7% top 10% · 1.5k works
  9. 9 ?? · #23 all time 16.4% top 10% · 1.3k works
  10. 10 Malaysia · #13 all time 13.2% top 10% · 1.7k 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 62 countries ranked in Water Science and Technology. Composite of field-normalised excellence (50%), output (30%) and citations (20%); the bracket is the all-time rank.

All countries ranked in Water Science and Technology

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 China 30k works
  2. 2 India 10k works
  3. 3 United States 7.5k works
  4. 4 Brazil 7.3k works
  5. 5 Indonesia 6.3k works
  6. 6 Iran 2.6k works
  7. 7 Türkiye 1.9k works
  8. 8 Malaysia 1.7k works
  9. 9 Nigeria 1.6k works
  10. 10 Egypt 1.6k 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: 42.6%India: 14.6%United States: 10.5%Brazil: 10.3%6 others listed: 22.0%43%largest
China30k · 42.6%India10k · 14.6%United States7,458 · 10.5%Brazil7,297 · 10.3%6 others listed16k · 22.0%

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

Which institutions lead Water Science and Technology research?

Chinese Academy of Sciences (China) ranks first in Water Science and Technology on research quality in 2022–2025, followed by Harbin Institute of Technology and Tsinghua University.

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Chinese Academy of Sciences China · Beijing · #1 all time 27.1% top 10% · 632 works
  2. 2 Harbin Institute of Technology China · Harbin · #3 all time 33.1% top 10% · 388 works
  3. 3 Tsinghua University China · Beijing · #5 all time 28.7% top 10% · 330 works
  4. 4 State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse China · Nanjing · #9 all time 33.0% top 10% · 227 works
  5. 5 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences China · Beijing · #12 all time 26.1% top 10% · 349 works
  6. 6 Kunming University of Science and Technology China · Kunming · #63 all time 24.2% top 10% · 355 works
  7. 7 Hohai University China · Nanjing · #51 all time 21.7% top 10% · 387 works
  8. 8 Central South University China · Changsha · #27 all time 21.5% top 10% · 475 works
  9. 9 Beijing Normal University China · Beijing · #24 all time 26.8% top 10% · 300 works
  10. 10 Tianjin University China · Tianjin · #25 all time 26.6% top 10% · 270 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 295 institutions above the floor of 40 fractional works in Water Science and Technology.

Top 100 Water Science and Technology institutions

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Chinese Academy of SciencesChina 632 works
  2. 2 Central South UniversityChina 475 works
  3. 3 Harbin Institute of TechnologyChina 388 works
  4. 4 Hohai UniversityChina 387 works
  5. 5 Kunming University of Science and TechnologyChina 355 works
  6. 6 University of Chinese Academy of SciencesChina 349 works
  7. 7 Tsinghua UniversityChina 330 works
  8. 8 China University of Mining and TechnologyChina 309 works
  9. 9 Beijing Normal UniversityChina 300 works
  10. 10 Tianjin UniversityChina 270 works

Who are the leading researchers in Water Science and Technology?

Among the most productive authors in Water Science and Technology, Johan Rockström, James N. Galloway and Menachem Elimelech rank highest on the composite score.

  1. 1 Johan Rockström Germany · #967 worldwide 3.9k citations · 93 works
  2. 2 James N. Galloway United States · #1,677 worldwide 2.3k citations · 100 works
  3. 3 Menachem Elimelech United States · #2,304 worldwide 3k citations · 120 works
  4. 4 Nidal Hilal United Kingdom · #2,489 worldwide 2.4k citations · 118 works
  5. 5 Dennis Baldocchi United States · #2,533 worldwide 3.5k citations · 156 works
  6. 6 Soroosh Sorooshian United States · #2,630 worldwide 2.7k citations · 151 works
  7. 7 Gianpaolo Balsamo United Kingdom · #2,901 worldwide 3.5k citations · 68 works
  8. 8 Paulo César Sentelhas Brazil · #3,115 worldwide 2.1k citations · 68 works
  9. 9 Yuh‐Shan Ho Taiwan · #3,163 worldwide 1k citations · 81 works
  10. 10 Hoshin V. Gupta United States · #3,479 worldwide 2k citations · 99 works

Re-ranked on the composite score from the 5,497 highest-output authors in Water Science and Technology. Identities come from OpenAlex author disambiguation, which occasionally merges or splits people.

Top 100 Water Science and Technology researchers

Where is Water Science and Technology research done?

The largest centres of Water Science and Technology research in 2022–2025 are Beijing (China), Nanjing (China), Wuhan (China) and Shanghai (China). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Nabeul and Jubail.

Largest cities, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Beijing China 5.8k works
  2. 2 Nanjing China 2k works
  3. 3 Wuhan China 1.4k works
  4. 4 Shanghai China 1.3k works
  5. 5 Guangzhou China 1k works
  6. 6 Xi'an China 1k works
  7. 7 Tehran Iran 1k works
  8. 8 Tianjin China 997 works
  9. 9 Changsha China 905 works
  10. 10 Hangzhou China 888 works

Where it is the local speciality

  1. NabeulTN · 22.5 works16×
  2. JubailSA · 25.0 works13×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Water Science and Technology than the world average.

See Water Science and Technology on the map

Water Science and Technology research by country

The best places for Water Science and Technology research inside each country, with that country's researchers and world standing.

Where is the best place to study Water Science and Technology?

Among universities, judged by research, Qatar University, Université Ibn Zohr and King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals 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 29.7%fractional works in this node (log) →share in the world top 10% →Qatar University: 92, 35.2%Université Ibn Zohr: 59, 41.8%King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals: 174, 30.7%Khalifa University of Science and Technology: 89, 31.4%King Khalid University: 67, 32.2%IHE Delft Institute for Water Education: 51, 21.1%Tiangong University: 195, 25.2%Hunan University: 154, 43.0%Arba Minch University: 62, 15.1%North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power: 162, 21.3%Université Ibn ZohrQatar UniversityKhalifa University o…King Fahd University…
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
1 Qatar UniversityQatar 57.135.2%3.0×92 +271.4%
2 Université Ibn ZohrMorocco 56.341.8%3.9×59 +399.0%
3 King Fahd University of Petroleum and MineralsSaudi Arabia 56.130.7%4.7×174 +95.3%
4 Khalifa University of Science and TechnologyUnited Arab Emirates 55.631.4%3.5×89 +2454.1%
5 King Khalid UniversitySaudi Arabia 52.432.2%1.7×67 +308.9%
6 IHE Delft Institute for Water EducationNetherlands 52.121.1%26.3×51 -1.7%
7 Tiangong UniversityChina 51.825.2%7.6×195 +17.9%
8 Hunan UniversityChina 51.443.0%2.1×154 +64.3%
9 Arba Minch UniversityEthiopia 51.115.1%8.5×62 +821.2%
10 North China University of Water Resources and Electric PowerChina 49.721.3%10.1×162 -58.1%

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 Water Science and Technology research growing?

Output in 2018–2022 was 32% higher than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2025. The fastest-growing topics are Heavy Metal Pollution Remediation, Scientific Research Methodologies and Applications and Geography and Environmental Studies.

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. Heavy Metal Pollution Remediation+986%
  2. Scientific Research Methodologies and Applications+567%
  3. Geography and Environmental Studies+312%
  4. Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies+272%
  5. Adsorption and biosorption for pollutant removal+208%
  6. Agriculture, Water, and Health+193%
  7. Water Quality and Resources Studies-3%
  8. Water Resources and Sustainability-13%
  9. Physical Activity and Education Research-62%
  10. Environmental and Agricultural Sciences-82%
← shrinkingno changegrowing →

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

What does Water Science and Technology include?

Hydrology and Watershed Management Studies: 67k fractional worksAdsorption and biosorption for pollutant removal: 56k fractional worksMembrane Separation Technologies: 49k fractional worksWater Quality Monitoring Technologies: 44k fractional worksWater Quality and Pollution Assessment: 40k fractional worksMinerals Flotation and Separation Techniques: 38k fractional worksEnvironmental and Agricultural Sciences: 32k fractional worksAdvanced oxidation water…29kAdvanced oxidation water treatment: 29k fractional worksGeography and Environmental Studies: 25k fractional worksWater-Energy-Food Nexus Studies: 24k fractional worksFluoride Effects and Removal: 16k fractional worksIntegrated Water Resources Management: 15k fractional works

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