First on the scene…
In the last year or so, a number of new open-access titles have been launched or established journals flipped to an “author pay” model, dramatically changing the open-access publishing landscape within chemistry. It is worth noting that when ChemistryOpen began in 2011, it was the first open-access society-owned general chemistry journal.
Since it started, ChemistryOpen has grown steadily, maintaining the high standards and aspirations expected of all the ChemPubSoc Europe (www.chempubsoc.eu) journals, which include Chemistry—A European Journal, ChemPlusChem, ChemSusChem, and a number of titles more specialist journals such as European Journal of Organic Chemistry, European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, ChemPhysChem and ChemMedChem.
Invaluable guidance…
Like all of the ChemPubSoc Europe journals, ChemistryOpen is supported by an Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) comprised of leaders in chemistry research. EAB members support the journal through publications, and many of our most cited (Table 1) and accessed (Table 2) articles are from authors who serve on the EAB. Indeed, the excellent contributions highlighted here have undoubtedly contributed significantly to the journals first impact factor (IF) of 2.938 (ISI Journal Citation Report 2013 Edition).
Table 1.
The top-five most cited ChemistryOpen articles of all time.
| Correspondence Author(s)[a] | Article Title | Times Cited[b] | Type[c] | Reference[d] | DOI[e] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burkhard König | Photocatalytic Arylation of Alkenes, Alkynes and Enones with Diazonium Salts | 38 | C | 2012, 1(3), 130–133 | 10.1002/ open.201200011 |
| Ramón Martínez-Máñez | Dual Enzyme-Triggered Controlled Release on Capped Nanometric Silica Mesoporous Supports | 24 | C | 2012, 1(1), 17–20 | 10.1002/ open.201200003 |
| F. Matthias Bickelhaupt | Halogen Bonding versus Hydrogen Bonding: A Molecular Orbital Perspective | 24 | F | 2012, 1(2), 96–105 | 10.1002/ open.201100015 |
| Ralph Weissleder | Efficient 18F-Labeling of Synthetic Exendin-4 Analogues for Imaging Beta Cells | 16 | F | 2012, 1(4), 177–183 | 10.1002/ open.201200014 |
| Stefan Grimme | Benchmark Study of the Performance of Density Functional Theory for Bond Activations with (Ni,Pd)-Based Transition-Metal Catalysts | 13 | F | 2013, 2(3), 115–124 | 10.1002/ open.201300012 |
| C. Oliver Kappe | Characterization of Microwave-Induced Electric Discharge Phenomena in Metal–Solvent Mixtures | 13 | F | 2012, 1(1), 39–48 | 10.1002/ open.201100013 |
[a] Names in bold are members of the ChemistryOpen Editorial Advisory Board. [b] Data from Thomson Reuters Web of Science on January 19th, 2015. [c] C=Communication, F=Full Paper. [d] Year, volume(issue), page range. [e] Digital object identifiers (DOIs) can be resolved at http://dx.doi.org.
Table 2.
The top-five most accessed ChemistryOpen articles of 2014.[a]
| Correspondence Author(s)[b] | Article Title | Type[c] | Reference[d] | DOI[e] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C. Oliver Kappe | Characterization of Microwave-Induced Electric Discharge Phenomena in Metal– Solvent Mixtures | F | 2012, 1(1), 39–48 | 10.1002/ open.201100013 |
| Stefan Grimme | Benchmark Study of the Performance of Density Functional Theory for Bond Activations with (Ni,Pd)-Based Transition-Metal Catalysts | F | 2013, 2(3), 115–124 | 10.1002/ open.201300012 |
| Burkhard König, Oliver Reiser | Magnetic Nanobeads as Support for Zinc(II)–Cyclen Complexes: Selective and Reversible Extraction of Riboflavin | Z | 2012, 1(3), 125–129 | 10.1002/ open.201200008 |
| F. Matthias Bickelhaupt | B-DNA Structure and Stability as Function of Nucleic Acid Composition: Dispersion-Corrected DFT Study of Dinucleoside Monophosphate Single and Double Strands | F | 2013, 2(5–6), 186–193 | 10.1002/ open.201300019 |
| Yi Ren, F. Matthias Bickelhaupt | Understanding E2 versus SN2 Competition under Acidic and Basic Conditions | F | 2014, 3(1), 29–36 | 10.1002/ open.201300043 |
[a] From January 2014 to December 2014. [b] Names in bold are members of the ChemistryOpen Editorial Advisory Board. [c] C=Communication, F=Full Paper. [d] Year, volume(issue), page range. [e] Digital object identifiers (DOIs) can be resolved at http://dx.doi.org.
In addition to publishing with ChemistryOpen, members of the EAB support the journal through peer review efforts and act as ambassadors in the community. EAB members also take on more extensive roles within the journal, such as being the Guest Editor of a virtual issue (see below) and proposing topics for timely Review articles within their field. Review articles are new to ChemistryOpen in 2015; the journal seeks to publish a small number of highly relevant expert Review articles each year on hot topics within chemistry. Authors interested in authoring a Review article are encouraged to contact the Editorial Office to discuss the proposed topic.
In 2015, we welcome Prof. Johan Wouters (University of Namur, Belgium) to the ChemistryOpen EAB. Prof. Wouters has expertise in medicinal and physical chemistry, which complement the research fields of the rest of the board. Prof. Wouters is an active member of the Belgian chemistry community, which is particularly fitting as both the Société Royale de Chimie (SRC) and the Koninklijke Vlaamse Chemische Vereniging (KVCV) are part of ChemPubSoc Europe and therefore co-owners of the journal.
A growing journal…
The number of submissions received have grown significantly over the first three volumes (Figure 1), particularly since July 2014 when the journal received its impressive first impact factor and began a “free to publish” promotion to celebrate this achievement.
Figure 1.
Number of submissions received (line graph) and articles published in volumes 1—3 (bar chart) over time (September 2011 to December 2014).
With this sharp increase in submissions, the journal size will necessarily grow also, and we can already see this happening with Issue 01/2015. Rapid growth can often bring with it a slower publication process, however, ChemistryOpen continues to offer authors fast decisions (16–22 days) and efficient manuscript handling post acceptance, with publication taking just three to four weeks from receipt of the accepted version to online publication.
As a multidisciplinary journal, ChemistryOpen covers all aspects of chemistry and its subdisciplines. This is evident by the topics covered in the journal (Figure 2). Accompanying our broad scope, the journal also features more specialized virtual issues that seek to highlight particular areas within the chemical sciences of current interest and importance.
Figure 2.
ChemistryOpen articles published in 2012–2014 by broad subject area covered.
In 2014, ChemistryOpen published two virtual issues. The first focused on Structure Characterization of Biomolecules and featured a number of excellent papers, including an Editorial (DOI: 10.1002/open.201402018) from the Guest Editor and ChemistryOpen EAB member Prof. Kathrin Breuker (University of Innsbruck, Austria).
EAB co-chairperson Prof. Ramón Martínez-Máñez (Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain) was the Guest Editor on a special issue dedicated to Molecular Sensors; this exciting field is overviewed nicely in the Virtual Issue Editorial from the Guest Editor (DOI: 10.1002/open.201402070).
ChemistryOpen is currently accepting submissions for two virtual issues: the first is entitled Carbohydrates in the 21st Century: Synthesis & Applications (submissions due: May 31st, 2015) with EAB member Prof. Antony Fairbanks (University of Canterbury, New Zealand) in the role of Guest Editor; the second focuses on Nature-Inspired Organic Chemistry (submissions due: June 30th, 2015) with Guest Editor and EAB member Prof. Oliver Reiser (University of Regensburg, Germany). Researchers wishing to contribute to these or future virtual issues should contact the Editorial Office via email for further details.
Truly global reach…
One of the great advantages of an open-access journal is that anyone anywhere can read the articles we publish. This creates a very diverse authorship and readership, with fans of the journal across the globe.
Submissions in 2014 were received from all parts of the world (Figure 3 a), with the majority coming from Europe and Asia. Published articles were typically from countries with long-established excellence in chemistry. In both cases, the strong representation of European countries is likely to be a reflection of our EAB and our society owners, who have actively supported the journal through submissions in the first three years before the impact factor was released. It should be noted here that percentage values when dealing with such a small dataset (Figure 1) can often be misleading, and thus any conclusions drawn from these data should be treated with caution.
Figure 3.
a) Submissions received in 2014 by region; b) articles published in 2014 by country.
Beyond looking at authorship, to assess its impact within the field, it is important to look at who is taking an interest in the journal (Figure 4). Around 67 % of visitors to the journals homepage on Wiley Online Library are from North America, Western Europe, and Asia (namely India, China and Japan), with the rest of the world representing around 33 %. This diverse and extensive reach is to be expected for an open-access journal, where no barriers to access are present for a reader beyond requiring internet access.
Figure 4.
Number of unique visits in 2014 to the journals homepage (www.chemistryopen.org) on Wiley Online Library by country. Percentages are given for the top 10 ranked countries.
Changing face of access…
Before the internet, readers had to wait until they received their monthly copy of the journal in the mail to read the latest articles. Later, readers relied on e-mail alerts for notification of a new issue. More recently, many readers subscribe to RSS feeds or e-mail alerts to articles as soon as they are published in EarlyView. Now, social media is playing a growing role in how readers are choosing to interact with scientific publications and hear about new articles in their field. There seems to be ever more options for readers on how to follow the science others publish.
ChemistryOpen is active on social media platforms, including both Facebook (www.facebook.com/chemistryopen) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/chemistryopen), with 5188 likes and 283 followers, respectively, as of January 31st, 2015.
Similarly, many readers are moving towards mobile access to scientific publications from their smartphone or tablet. In response to this growing need, the ChemistryOpen app was released in 2014 for iPads and iPhones, and in 2015 the app will be released for Android users. The app is free to download and of course, all articles are open access; more information can be found here: www.chemistryopen.mobi.
Get involved…
We encourage all our readers to get further involved with ChemistryOpen—subscribe to our RSS feed or e-mail alerts, download our mobile app, share our articles with your colleagues, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, and most importantly submit your next top manuscript to us!
Dr. Natalia Ortúzar
Deputy Editor
ChemistryOpen