Publication Guide
The Chinese Chemical Society (CCS) is China's national learned society for chemistry. Founded in 1932 and now headquartered in Beijing at the Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, it counts roughly 55,000 members and sponsors around 20 academic journals spanning every branch of chemistry - from general and organic chemistry to physical chemistry, polymers, catalysis, and chemical education.
Unlike large commercial houses, CCS uses a mixed publishing model. Its flagship, CCS Chemistry, has been self-published on the society's own platform since 2019 as a fully open-access journal with no article processing charge. Most other CCS-sponsored titles are co-published with international partners: Chinese Journal of Chemistry appears via Wiley, and Chinese Chemical Letters via Elsevier, while several Chinese-language titles are produced with Chinese institutes and university presses. This guide explains which CCS venue fits your paper, what publishing costs (often nothing), how peer review works, and how to submit.
Which Chinese Chemical Society journal fits your paper?
| You're most likely to... | Choose this route |
|---|---|
| Want a high-visibility, fee-free open-access venue for significant chemistry research | CCS Chemistry - the society's flagship, launched 2019. Gold OA with no APC, published on the society's own platform. Selective, English-language, international scope. |
| Want a fast-turnaround venue for short communications | Chinese Chemical Letters - co-published with Elsevier since 1990; publishes letters and short communications across all of chemistry. |
| Want a general chemistry journal with international distribution | Chinese Journal of Chemistry - co-published with Wiley; full papers across the chemical sciences. |
| Are writing in Chinese for a domestic audience | Acta Chimica Sinica and sister titles such as Chinese Journal of Organic Chemistry and Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry - the society's long-running Chinese-language journals. |
| Work in physical chemistry specifically | Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica - the society's dedicated physical-chemistry title. |
What the Chinese Chemical Society publishes
Around 20 sponsored journals, all within chemistry and its interfaces:
- CCS Chemistry - the flagship English-language journal, self-published since 2019, covering all areas of chemistry with an emphasis on high-significance work.
- Co-published English titles - Chinese Journal of Chemistry (Wiley) and Chinese Chemical Letters (Elsevier), both indexed in Scopus and Web of Science.
- Chinese-language society titles - Acta Chimica Sinica, Acta Physico-Chimica Sinica, Chinese Journal of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, Chinese Journal of Applied Chemistry, and education-focused titles such as University Chemistry.
- Co-sponsored specialist titles - the society also co-sponsors journals in catalysis, polymer science, chromatography, and fuel chemistry together with Chinese Academy of Sciences institutes.
Open access and fees
The society's headline story is that its flagship is free at both ends: CCS Chemistry charges no article processing charge and is free to read, with articles published under a CC BY-NC license (per its DOAJ listing). Fees for other titles depend on the publishing partner.
| Route | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| CCS Chemistry (gold OA) | $0 - no APC | Free to publish and read; CC BY-NC license; listed in DOAJ |
| Chinese Chemical Letters (Elsevier) | Subscription with OA option | APC set by Elsevier - check the journal's homepage for the current fee |
| Chinese Journal of Chemistry (Wiley) | Subscription with OA option | APC set by Wiley - check the current Wiley price list |
| Chinese-language society titles | Varies by title | Page charges or APCs are set per journal - consult each journal's author guidelines |
Because fee policies for co-published titles are set by Wiley and Elsevier and revised annually, always check the current price list on the journal's own page before submitting. Waivers and Read & Publish coverage for those titles follow the partner publisher's policies.
Peer review
- Model: single-anonymized peer review is standard across CCS titles - reviewers know the authors' identities, authors do not know the reviewers'.
- CCS Chemistry operates a selective editorial process with an international editorial board and academic editors drawn from leading chemistry departments worldwide.
- Turnaround: decision times vary by title and are not centrally published; short-format venues such as Chinese Chemical Letters are generally faster than full-paper journals. Check each journal's author guidelines for current expectations.
How to submit
- Pick the journal. Match your manuscript's scope, language, and format (full paper vs. letter) to the titles above.
- Read the author guidelines. Each journal has its own guide covering scope, length limits, and formatting.
- Prepare your manuscript. CCS journals use a numbered citation style; SciSpace templates for CCS formats are available to handle formatting automatically.
- Submit through the right system. CCS Chemistry uses the society's own submission platform on its publishing site; Wiley and Elsevier co-published titles use those publishers' submission systems - the journal homepage links to the correct portal.
- Respond to review. Revisions and decisions are handled inside the same system used for submission.
Ethics and integrity
The Chinese Chemical Society is a COPE member, and its journals follow COPE guidance on misconduct, corrections, and retractions. The society has been a member of IUPAC since 1980 and of the Federation of Asian Chemical Societies since 1984, and operates as a non-profit under the China Association for Science and Technology. Co-published titles additionally follow Wiley's and Elsevier's publishing-ethics frameworks.
