Journal profile · deep underground science and engineering
Deep Underground Science and Engineering
ISSN 2097-0668 · eISSN 2770-1328 · Wiley · China · Quarterly · Founded 2022
Deep Underground Science and Engineering: CAS Zone 4 · Engineering (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 5.3 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,500; median 108 days to acceptance (77 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 20% (journal website); 96 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Deep Underground Science and Engineering is published by Wiley and is in Zone 4 of Engineering in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Rock Mechanics and Modeling, Geotechnical Engineering and Underground Structures and Geotechnical Engineering and Analysis, together about 34.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Civil and Structural Engineering. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Open access, fee free publication. Your research will be globally available with no barriers, maximizing it’s reach and impact. Publishing fees are currently waived. A field leading publishing partner. Our journal is published on behalf of the China University of Mining and Technology, a global research leader. World class Editors. Gain valuable insight from an editorial board who are experts in deep underground science. Globally discoverable research. Our journal is indexed by the DOAJ, ESCI and Engineering Index, making your research discoverable for audiences around the world.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): deep underground science and engineering
Editor-in-chief Heping XiePublisher website
Editorial board by country: 30 in mainland China (about 63%); most named Mainland China 30, Australia 4, United States 2, United Kingdom 2, Germany 2 (48 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Rock Mechanics and ModelingEngineering21%
- Geotechnical Engineering and Underground StructuresEngineering7%
- Geotechnical Engineering and AnalysisEngineering6.1%
- Tunneling and Rock MechanicsEngineering5.8%
- Landslides and related hazardsEnvironmental Science5.1%
- Drilling and Well EngineeringEngineering4.6%
- Hydraulic Fracturing and Reservoir AnalysisEngineering4.3%
- Geothermal Energy Systems and ApplicationsEnergy4.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Engineering Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Engineering | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Engineering, Geological | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Engineering Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Geological | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EI CompendexPublisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 5.3Publisher website ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 5.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 7.3LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 7.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 7.3Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.98LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.33LetPub ·
- h-index
- 21OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 61OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.45OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 11.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 99.44%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 82LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2Publisher website ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 86Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 91,272Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 296 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 59 | 59 | 18 |
| 2025 | 96 | 96 | 283 |
| 2024 | 69 | 69 | 472 |
| 2023 | 49 | 49 | 676 |
| 2022 | 23 | 23 | 367 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
108 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 76 days – 146 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 111 days (77 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 237 days
- Sample
- 77 articles with submission and acceptance dates (157 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 20%Publisher website ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 20%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 117 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 147 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 12 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | EUR 2,168 / GBP 1,839 / USD 2,500 | Yes | CC BY | |
| OpenAlex | USD 0 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 2,500 / GBP 1,839 / EUR 2,168 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Submission fee
- No submission fee
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Article types accepted11
- case studyCase Study Case study (also called "case history") is the account of real deep underground engineering situations and projects that provide a context for engine…Length not stated
- commentaryArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- editorialArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- opinionArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- original researchArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- perspectiveArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- research articleArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- reviewArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- review articleArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- short communicationArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
- viewpointArticle Type Description Abstract / Structure Other Requirements Review Article We expect our reviews to be authoritative pieces of work, aimed at describing re…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- Authorship Authorship
All listed authors should have contributed to the manuscript substantially and have agreed to the final submitted version. Review editorial standards and scroll down for a description of authorship criteria.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Conflict of Interest
The journal requires that all authors disclose any potential sources of conflict of interest. Any interest or relationship, financial or otherwise that might be perceived as influencing an author's objectivity is considered a potential source of conflict of interest. These must be disclosed when directly relevant or directly related to the work that the authors describe in their manuscript. Potent…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Sharing and Data Availability
This journal expects data sharing. Review Wiley’s Data Sharing policy where you will be able to see and select the data availability statement that is right for your submission.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Reproduction of Copyright Material
CC-BY license Model summary
If excerpts from copyrighted works owned by third parties are included, credit must be shown in the contribution. It is your responsibility to also obtain written permission for reproduction from the copyright owners. For more information visit Wiley’s Copyright Terms & Conditions FAQ.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access
This journal is a Gold open access title for more information about this journal's APC's, please visit the Open access Page. The fees will be sponsored by China University of Mining and Technology.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review
Double-blind peer review Model summary
This journal operates under a double-blind peer review model. Papers will only be sent to review if the Editor-in-Chief determines that the paper meets the appropriate quality and relevance requirements.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprint your manuscript on Authorea
Preprints accepted Model summary
You can now opt to seamlessly preprint your manuscript at submission, through Wiley’s Under Review service, powered by Authorea. Make your work citable and discoverable, before it is accepted or published.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Country or region
- China
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Quarterly
- Founded
- 2022
- ISSN
- 2097-0668
- Electronic ISSN
- 2770-1328
- Society / sponsor
- China University of Mining and Technology
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 5, Issue 2 (June 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Deep Underground Science and Engineering
What CAS zone is Deep Underground Science and Engineering in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Deep Underground Science and Engineering is in Zone 4 of Engineering, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Engineering, Geological. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Engineering. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Deep Underground Science and Engineering?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 5.3 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 7.3, h-index 21.
How long does peer review take at Deep Underground Science and Engineering?
Based on the dates recorded on 77 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 108 days (interquartile range 76–146 days); authors report an average review time of about 12 weeks; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 20% (2025). Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Where are the editorial board members of Deep Underground Science and Engineering based?
Of the 48 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 30 (about 63%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (30), Australia (4) and United States (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Deep Underground Science and Engineering?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Deep Underground Science and Engineering is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists EI Compendex; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Deep Underground Science and Engineering open access, and what is the APC?
Deep Underground Science and Engineering is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,500.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .