Paper by UD researchers makes 'TopCited' list

2:23 p.m., June 13, 2008--An article published by three researchers in the Department of Mechanical Engineering has made the Scopus “TopCited” list. Published in Composites Science and Technology, “Nanocomposites in Context” was authored by Chunyi Li, associate scientist; Erik Thostenson, research assistant professor; and Tsu-Wei Chou, Pierre S. du Pont Chair of Engineering.

Published in March 2005, the paper currently is ranked No. 14 in the materials science category for the period from 2005-08. TopCited lists the 20 most-cited papers over three-, four- and five-year periods for more than 25 topics, ranging from agricultural and biological sciences to veterinary medicine.

Scopus, the largest abstract and citation database of research literature and quality web sources, covers 15,000 peer-reviewed journals from more than 4,000 publishers, as well as 22 million patent records and results from 386 million scientific web pages.

In the TopCited paper, Li, Thostenson and Chou examine recent advances in nanocomposites research; address research opportunities and challenges in the development of structural and functional nanocomposites; present the state of knowledge in processing, characterization and modeling of nanocomposites; and discuss critical issues in nanocomposites research.

In 2002, Chou was named a “Highly Cited Researcher” in the field of materials science by the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI). In earning this designation, he joined an exclusive group made up of less than one half of 1 percent of all publishing researchers.

Chou's collective publications in materials science and applied mechanics have been cited more than 5,000 times. He joined the UD faculty in 1969 and was named to the Francis Alison Society in 2001.

“This is good news,” said Michael Chajes, dean of the College of Engineering, “because it tells us that our researchers are having an impact in the broader scientific community. The field of nanocomposites is an emerging area of research, and it's great to know that faculty from the University of Delaware are doing work that is noticed and cited by others.”

Article by Diane S. Kukich