Scientometric and content mapping of the 100 most cited papers in chemistry

The purpose of this study is to conduct a scientometric and content mapping analysis of the 100 most cited papers in chemistry. This paper also aims to explore the factors contributing to the high citation count of these papers. In addition, the content analysis provides insights into the main themes, methods, and results of the work. The data required for this study were collected from the Scopus database, then interpreted and analyzed. The study mainly focuses on two areas: scientometric analysis and content analysis of selected papers. The results reveal the dominance of theoretical and basic research among the 100 most cited papers. Citations of these papers were found to be unrelated to Journal Impact Factor (JIF), number of pages, number of authors, or number of keywords. However, a small positive correlation was observed between citations and the h-index of the first author. In general, basic principles or theories with broad applicability, simple experimental methods, and high reproducibility were identified as key features of the most cited papers in chemistry. This study is academically valuable because of its combined scientometric and in-depth content analysis among the 100 most cited papers in chemistry. Such documentation, especially in the field of chemistry, is unique in nature and will be helpful to researchers and information professionals in the future.