Potassium

Potassium (K) — 10-Year Trends

As of 2026-09-25 · the last 10 years

Potassium’s research intensity currently sits at about 50% of its own all-time peak, a level that has remained essentially flat over the last decade, with the historical peak occurring well before this window.

Research intensity ran from about 49% of the element's own all-time peak in 2016 to about 50% in 2026 — essentially flat across the window, and the all-time peak (1965) lies before this window. Over the same span its share of research attention across all elements held steady. Among the 118 elements, potassium has a larger-than-average research literature.

The number of papers involving the element rose from about 56,146 in 2016 to about 135,481 in 2025 (2.41x). That matches the growth of the literature as a whole over the same years: the general tide of scientific output, not a surge specific to the element.

The research communities defining potassium’s recent literature are stable in their relative weight. The largest group, Potassium Fertilization and Nutrient Management in Crop Production, accounts for about 16.5% of the element's recent research. Here, potassium is a minor presence in a much larger community — about 7% of its papers involve potassium — with work focused on fertilization, soil availability, and interactions with nitrogen and phosphorus to optimize crop yield. A key anchor is a 2021 paper on drought stress impacts on plants, cited over 1,900 times. Similarly, Potassium-Ion Anode Materials and Battery Storage holds about 16.0% of recent research. In this field, potassium is one strand of a broader community — about 16% of its papers involve potassium — focusing on porous carbon anodes and potassium metal electrodes. A 2024 review on rational design for high-performance potassium-ion batteries, cited over 360 times, is central to this area. The third major community, Potassium Balance and Electrolyte Management in Clinical Medicine, represents about 8.2% of recent research. Potassium is one strand of this broader community — about 12% of its papers involve potassium — with studies examining serum levels, dietary intake, and the sodium-to-potassium ratio in renal and cardiovascular health. A 2021 study on salt substitution and cardiovascular events, cited over 740 times, exemplifies this clinical focus.

Across these three named communities, the share of research has remained steady, with the remainder of the literature—comprising other smaller groups—holding a combined share of about 59.3%.

For a deeper look at the current state of potassium research, see the Last 12 Months report and Executive Brief.