World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Science of the Total Environment
H-index 218

Science of the Total Environment

Ranking & Metrics

Discipline name Position Best Scientists Publications D-Index
Environmental Sciences 1 3292 10307 176

Additional Metrics

Number of Best Scientists*: 11607
Documents by Best Scientists*: 21810
Top 100 Ranked Scientists*: 297
SCIMAGO H-index: 399
SCIMAGO SJR: 2.137
Impact Factor: 8

Overview

Top Research Topics at Science of The Total Environment?

The foci of Science of The Total Environment are Environmental chemistry, Hydrology, Environmental engineering, Ecology and Soil water. Environmental chemistry research featured in it incorporates concerns from various other topics such as Organic matter, Pollutant, Contamination, Sediment and Pollution. Water quality, Drainage basin, Surface water, Groundwater and Surface runoff are all aspects of Hydrology discussed in the journal.

Groundwater research is the primary subject tackled in it with a focus on Aquifer. It explores research in Environmental engineering and the adjacent study of Air pollution. Ecosystem is a major topic of Ecology research presented in it.

Science of The Total Environment is mostly focused on Soil water, specifically Soil contamination.

  • Environmental chemistry (23.01%)
  • Hydrology (9.28%)
  • Environmental engineering (8.50%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

  • A review on the occurrence of micropollutants in the aquatic environment and their fate and removal during wastewater treatment (1998 citations)
  • Removal of nutrients in various types of constructed wetlands. (1779 citations)
  • Occurrence of antibiotics in the aquatic environment. (1752 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at Science of The Total Environment:

The most cited articles mainly tackle studies in Environmental chemistry, Environmental engineering, Hydrology, Pollution and Soil water. The Environmental chemistry research tackled in the most cited articles is interrelated with Wastewater which concerns subjects like Effluent. The journal papers deal with Environmental engineering in conjunction with Air pollution and similar fields in Air quality index, Particulates and Aerosol.

Papers citation over time

A key indicator for each journal is its effectiveness in reaching other researchers with the papers published at that venue.

The chart below presents the interquartile range (first quartile 25%, median 50% and third quartile 75%) of the number of citations of articles over time.

The top authors publishing in Science of The Total Environment (based on the number of publications) are:

  • Michel Benarie (232 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Damià Barceló (179 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Colin Neal (115 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Xavier Querol (83 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Amadeu M.V.M. Soares (83 papers) published 4 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition.

The overall trend for top authors publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top authors.

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in Science of The Total Environment (based on the number of publications) are:

  • Chinese Academy of Sciences (3835 papers) published 136 papers at the last edition, 716 less than at the previous edition,
  • Spanish National Research Council (1242 papers) published 23 papers at the last edition, 143 less than at the previous edition,
  • Peking University (617 papers) published 18 papers at the last edition, 124 less than at the previous edition,
  • Beijing Normal University (616 papers) published 21 papers at the last edition, 112 less than at the previous edition,
  • Tsinghua University (606 papers) published 23 papers at the last edition, 134 less than at the previous edition.

The overall trend for top affiliations publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top affiliations.

Publication chance based on affiliation

The publication chance index shows the ratio of articles published by the best research institutions in the journal edition to all articles published within that journal. The best research institutions were selected based on the largest number of articles published during all editions of the journal.

The chart below presents the percentage ratio of articles from top institutions (based on their ranking of total papers).Top affiliations were grouped by their rank into the following tiers: top 1-10, top 11-20, top 21-50, and top 51+. Only articles with a recognized affiliation are considered.

During the most recent 2022 edition, 3.14% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 24.68% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 6.00% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 11.41% of all publications and 57.92% were from other institutions.

Returning Authors Index

A very common phenomenon observed among researchers publishing scientific articles is the intentional selection of journals they have already attended in the past. In particular, it is worth analyzing the case when the authors participate in the same journal from year to year.

The Returning Authors Index presented below illustrates the ratio of authors who participated in both a given as well as the previous edition of the journal in relation to all participants in a given year.

Returning Institution Index

The graph below shows the Returning Institution Index, illustrating the ratio of institutions that participated in both a given and the previous edition of the conference in relation to all affiliations present in a given year.

The experience to innovation index

Our experience to innovation index was created to show a cross-section of the experience level of authors publishing in a journal. The index includes the authors publishing at the last edition of a journal, grouped by total number of publications throughout their academic career (P) and the total number of citations of these publications ever received (C).

The group intervals were selected empirically to best show the diversity of the authors' experiences, their labels were selected as a convenience, not as judgment. The authors were divided into the following groups:

  • Novice - P < 5 or C < 25 (the number of publications less than 5 or the number of citations less than 25),
  • Competent - P < 10 or C < 100 (the number of publications less than 10 or the number of citations less than 100),
  • Experienced - P < 25 or C < 625 (the number of publications less than 25 or the number of citations less than 625),
  • Master - P < 50 or C < 2500 (the number of publications less than 50 or the number of citations less than 2500),
  • Star - P ≥ 50 and C ≥ 2500 (both the number of publications greater than 50 and the number of citations greater than 2500).

The chart below illustrates experience levels of first authors in cases of publications with multiple authors.

Top Publications

  • Environmental exposure to microplastics: An overview on possible human health effects

    Joana Correia Prata;João P. da Costa;Isabel Lopes;Armando C. Duarte

    (2020)
    2317 Citations
  • First confirmed detection of SARS-CoV-2 in untreated wastewater in Australia: A proof of concept for the wastewater surveillance of COVID-19 in the community.

    Warish Ahmed;Nicola Angel;Janette Edson;Kyle Bibby

    (2020)
    1921 Citations
  • COVID-19 outbreak: Migration, effects on society, global environment and prevention.

    Indranil Chakraborty;Prasenjit Maity

    (2020)
    1796 Citations
  • Degradation of antibiotics by advanced oxidation processes: An overview.

    Jianlong Wang;Run Zhuan

    (2020)
    1399 Citations
  • Effect of restricted emissions during COVID-19 on air quality in India.

    Shubham Sharma;Mengyuan Zhang;Anshika;Jingsi Gao

    (2020)
    1124 Citations
  • Catalytic ozonation for water and wastewater treatment: Recent advances and perspective.

    Jianlong Wang;Hai Chen

    (2020)
    1109 Citations
  • Occurrence, fate, and risk assessment of typical tetracycline antibiotics in the aquatic environment: A review.

    Longyao Xu;He Zhang;Ping Xiong;Qingqing Zhu

    (2021)
    1088 Citations
  • Changes in air quality during the lockdown in Barcelona (Spain) one month into the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic.

    Aurelio Tobías;Cristina Carnerero;Cristina Reche;Jordi Massagué

    (2020)
    844 Citations

Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

Studying Chemistry in the USA opens diverse career pathways, many of which can be enhanced through specialized online programs. For those interested in healthcare, pursuing advanced qualifications like dnp programs online offers a flexible route to becoming a nurse practitioner with expertise in medical applications of chemistry.

Entry-level certifications such as medical assistant certification are also valuable for individuals seeking swift entry into healthcare roles that often require knowledge of chemistry fundamentals.

For those aiming to advance quickly, fast track medical lpn programs provide accelerated learning options that can complement a chemistry background with practical nursing skills.

Additionally, online courses with available support such as financial aid for medical billing and coding online classes ease the burden of education costs while opening doors to medical administrative careers linked to healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors.

Best Scientists Contributing to This Journal