As of 2026-09-11 · the last 10 years
Research intensity has held steady at about 39% of the element's all-time peak, a level that has remained essentially flat across the last decade.
Research intensity ran from about 40% of the element's own all-time peak in 2016 to about 39% in 2026 — essentially flat across the window, and the all-time peak (1981) lies before this window. Over the same span its share of research attention across all elements rose. Among the 118 elements, manganese has a larger-than-average research literature.
The number of papers involving the element rose from about 20,965 in 2016 to about 51,898 in 2025 (2.48x). 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 where manganese plays a material role are diverse, spanning medicine, geochemistry, and energy storage. In Manganese SOD Mimetics and Oxide Nanoparticles in Medicine, the work focuses on manganese superoxide dismutase activity, manganese oxide nanoparticle synthesis, and magnetic resonance imaging applications. Manganese is a minor presence in this much larger community, appearing in about 9% of its papers. This community accounts for about 11.6% of manganese's recent research, a share that has remained steady. A key paper in this area, "Homeostasis and metabolism of iron and other metal ions in neurodegenerative diseases" (2025), has been cited over 200 times.
In Manganese Oxide Mineralogy and Biogenic Formation, researchers examine the formation of manganese oxides, nodules, and deposits, focusing on biogenic processes and iron-manganese associations in geological and aquatic settings. Manganese is one strand of this broader community, involved in about 13% of its papers. It represents about 5.7% of manganese's recent research, a steady share. Notable work includes "Long-term organic carbon preservation enhanced by iron and manganese" (2023), cited over 190 times, and "Ecotoxicological consequences of manganese mining pollutants and their biological remediation" (2023), cited over 230 times.
Manganese Oxide Electrodes for Asymmetric Supercapacitors involves manganese oxides, sulfides, and layered double hydroxides as active electrode materials in high-performance asymmetric supercapacitor devices. Manganese is a minor presence here, central to about 9% of the community's papers. This community holds about 5.0% of manganese's recent research, a steady share. A representative study, "Recent advances on the manganese cobalt oxides as electrode materials for supercapacitor applications: A comprehensive review" (2023), has been cited over 220 times.
Across these communities, the composition of manganese research has remained stable, with no single community gaining or losing significant share relative to the others. The remainder of the element's research, comprising about 77.8% of recent work, is distributed across other smaller communities.
The most cited paper in the window, "Reversible aqueous zinc/manganese oxide energy storage from conversion reactions" (2016), has been cited over 3,000 times and belongs to the Aqueous Zinc-Ion Batteries and Hybrid Energy Storage community.
For a deeper look at the current state of manganese research, see the Last 12 Months and Executive Brief reports.
What changed in the past year: new papers, shifting applications, emerging collaborators. See the momentum over a shorter window than the decade view.
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A by-topic status read of what changed and what's new — built for decision-makers, not search engines. Citation clusters, emerging applications, and the papers that matter most.
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Showing Manganese's three strongest connections. Personal opens the slider and the whole 118-element graph.