Together, we examine China’s mainstream journal ranking system from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), including its history, recent reforms, and current operation. Using official statistics, we analyze the CAS system from 2015 to 2025, with emphasis on engineering and fluid mechanics. The system underwent substantial reforms, including the current Advanced edition (升级版), which broadly boosted the academic weights of fluids journals in China. Most notably, the new Field Normalized Citation Success Index (期刊超越指数; FNCSI) provides a new lens for assessing journal impact. The CAS uses Major and Minor Categories (大、小类学科). For example, Engineering and Technology (工程技术) is a relevant Major Category, while Physics, Fluids & Plasmas (物理、流体与等离子体) and Mechanics (力学) are relevant Minor Categories. Finally, we suggest directions for journals and researchers to support future efforts, as we continue to enjoy heightening research enthusiasm in China.
Dr. Cruz Y. Li received his B.S. in Engineering Mechanics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he was the student speaker at the Engineering Physics Graduation Ceremony. He then completed his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 3.5 years with the HKPFS Fellowship. At age 29, he received China’s national-level Youth Talent title and was appointed Full Professor of Civil Engineering and Fluid Mechanics at Chongqing University, China (U.S. News Best Global Civil Engineering Program: 4th worldwide). He is an Associate Editor of leading fluid mechanics journal Physics of Fluids (SCI Q1), Coordinator of IAWE Non-Synoptic Winds Task Group 3 on Wind Energy Systems, and an Expert Scientist for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Cities of the United Nations. He also leads 12 international and national projects as PI, including the World Bank Global Environment Facility (GEF).
Cruz’s research focuses on wind and urban physics, computational fluid dynamics, and data-driven analysis. Since first publishing in 2020, he has published 49 Q1 articles, with over 1,200 citations and an h-index of 21. Since 2020, he has ranked 5th worldwide and 1st in China in Scopus Views Count in Koopman Operator and Dynamical Systems & Applications. He is an active member of the international wind and fluid mechanics community, has attended more than 40 conferences, and has delivered 5 plenary speeches. He also founded Flow and Civil Structures, the first interdisciplinary special issue in the fluid mechanics community linking fluid mechanics with civil engineering, which published 195 SCI Q1 articles.
Cruz was born in Chongqing, China and grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from ages 12 to 19. He has studied and worked across four continents over 17 years and traveled to more than 40 countries. He was a varsity football, basketball, and volleyball athlete, and enjoys tennis, the gym, great food, and hand-drip coffee. He has been a lifelong fan of Manchester United and the LA Lakers.
Together, we examine China’s mainstream journal ranking system from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), including its history, recent reforms, and current operation. Using official statistics, we analyze the CAS system from 2015 to 2025, with emphasis on engineering and fluid mechanics. The system underwent substantial reforms, including the current Advanced edition (升级版), which broadly boosted the academic weights of fluids journals in China. Most notably, the new Field Normalized Citation Success Index (期刊超越指数; FNCSI) provides a new lens for assessing journal impact. The CAS uses Major and Minor Categories (大、小类学科). For example, Engineering and Technology (工程技术) is a relevant Major Category, while Physics, Fluids & Plasmas (物理、流体与等离子体) and Mechanics (力学) are relevant Minor Categories. Finally, we suggest directions for journals and researchers to support future efforts, as we continue to enjoy heightening research enthusiasm in China.
Dr. Cruz Y. Li received his B.S. in Engineering Mechanics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he was the student speaker at the Engineering Physics Graduation Ceremony. He then completed his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 3.5 years with the HKPFS Fellowship. At age 29, he received China’s national-level Youth Talent title and was appointed Full Professor of Civil Engineering and Fluid Mechanics at Chongqing University, China (U.S. News Best Global Civil Engineering Program: 4th worldwide). He is an Associate Editor of leading fluid mechanics journal Physics of Fluids (SCI Q1), Coordinator of IAWE Non-Synoptic Winds Task Group 3 on Wind Energy Systems, and an Expert Scientist for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Cities of the United Nations. He also leads 12 international and national projects as PI, including the World Bank Global Environment Facility (GEF).
Cruz’s research focuses on wind and urban physics, computational fluid dynamics, and data-driven analysis. Since first publishing in 2020, he has published 49 Q1 articles, with over 1,200 citations and an h-index of 21. Since 2020, he has ranked 5th worldwide and 1st in China in Scopus Views Count in Koopman Operator and Dynamical Systems & Applications. He is an active member of the international wind and fluid mechanics community, has attended more than 40 conferences, and has delivered 5 plenary speeches. He also founded Flow and Civil Structures, the first interdisciplinary special issue in the fluid mechanics community linking fluid mechanics with civil engineering, which published 195 SCI Q1 articles.
Cruz was born in Chongqing, China and grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from ages 12 to 19. He has studied and worked across four continents over 17 years and traveled to more than 40 countries. He was a varsity football, basketball, and volleyball athlete, and enjoys tennis, the gym, great food, and hand-drip coffee. He has been a lifelong fan of Manchester United and the LA Lakers.
