Publishing since 1902
To discuss the history of ECS publications you have to go back to the original ECS constitution which stated, in part, that
… its object shall be the advancement of the theory and practice of electrochemistry. Among the means to this end shall be the holding of meetings for the reading and discussion of professional and scientific papers of this subject, the publication of such papers, discussions, and communications as may seem expedient, and cooperation with chemical, electrical, and other scientific and technical societies.
Hence, a primary function of the Society since its formation has been the continuing dissemination of new and advanced knowledge in its fields of science and technology.
In July 1902, less than four months after the inaugural meeting of the Society, Transactions of the American Electrochemical Society (later Transactions of The Electrochemical Society) was first published. This publication evolved into ECS’s flagship journal, the Journal of The Electrochemical Society.
Over the years, ECS’s publications have grown and split off into a variety of other publications including conference proceedings, monographs, letters journals, and a news magazine.
Author Choice Open Access
Beginning in February 2014, ECS launched its Author Choice Open Access program, allowing authors the option of Open Access publication in all ECS journals. The program has seen great success, and as of the end of 2015, more than 1,000 papers in the ECS Digital Library are available as OA — over half of which have been published in JES.
The decision to move the journals to Open Access was made as part of a larger, mission-driven initiative announced by ECS in 2015 called Free the Science. With this initiative, ECS has pledged to open access to the entire ECS Digital Library, making all content from ECS journals freely available to readers, while remaining free to publish for authors – all while maintaining the same high peer review and editorial standards for the journals.
Historical articles and publications
Changing (Again)
M. Yess, Interface, 24(3), 7 (2015)
ECS Launches Author Choice Open Access
M. Yess, Interface, 23(1), 9 (2014)
New Journals, New Technical Interest Areas: Continuing to Meet the Needs of the Community
M. Yess, Interface, 21(1), 17 (2012)
ECS Centennial Series: ECS Serial Publications: 1902 to 2002
N. Hackerman, B. Miller, and P. A. Kohl, J. Electrochem. Soc., 149, S1 (2002)
The Electrochemical Society 1902-2002: A Centennial History
F. A. Trumbore and D. R. Turner, Chapter 9, p 79, The Electrochemical Society, Pennington, NJ (2002)
A History of The Electrochemical Society, 1902-1976
R. M. Burns and E. G. Enck, Chapter XIV, p 117, The Electrochemical Society, Princeton, NJ (1977)
Early years
Transactions of The American Electrochemical Society (1902-1930, Vol. 1-58)
Transactions of The Electrochemical Society (1931-1949, Vol. 59-96)
With some exceptions, the Transactions volumes consisted primarily of papers presented at Society meetings, as well as reports on the meetings and Board of Directors’ actions. These volumes were published twice annually, and would later transition to become ECS’s flagship publication, the Journal of The Electrochemical Society (JES).
Bulletin of The American Electrochemical Society (1902-1930)
Bulletin of The Electrochemical Society (1931-1947)
During the first half-dozen years or so, the Bulletin was published sporadically, a few times a year. Subsequently, this ran as a monthly newsletter. It merged with the Journal of The Electrochemical Society and became part of its “C” section in 1948. These new items then ceased being published in Journal of The Electrochemical Society and continued in Interface, which began publication in 1992.
Editors (the Secretary of the Society)
C. J. Reed (1902-1904)
S. S. Stadtler (1904-1907)
Joseph W. Richards (1907-1921)
Colin G. Fink (1921-1947)
Robert M. Burns (1947-1948)
Journal of The Electrochemical Society (JES — 1948-present, Vol. 93-present)
The transition from Transactions to the Journal of The Electrochemical Society was somewhat complicated. They overlapped for two years: 1948 (Vol. 93-94) and 1949 (Vol. 95-96), using the same volume numbers. During these years, the Transactions were published twice a year, as usual, at the same time that JES was published in two volumes per year with six monthly issues. The articles printed were identical, in identical order and page numbering in both publications; however, JES also incorporated the Bulletin.
From 1950, the Transactions were discontinued and JES was published in one volume per year in twelve monthly issues. Until 1952, only papers presented at the meetings were published in JES, but beginning with 1953, other contributions were also published.
There was a special situation for several years (1951-1955): No editor was identified on the masthead, instead Robert M. Burns was identified as “Chairman of the Editorial Staff,” and Norman Hackerman as “Technical Editor.” Hackerman continued as “Technical Editor” even while Cecil King was editor. This post was eliminated starting with 1969.
In July 2012, JES ceased publishing papers in solid state science and technology and a new journal was created (ECS Journal of Solid State Science and Technology) to cover those areas.
Beginning with JES Volume 160, Issue 5 (2013), ECS began publishing special Focus Issues in order to highlight scientific and technological areas of interest. These have included topics such as organic and biological electrochemistry, selected presentations from the IMLB 2014 meeting, and a special issue honoring Allen J. Bard.
Editors
Robert M. Burns (1948-1949, Vol. 93-95)
Herbert H. Uhlig (1949-1951, Vol. 95-98)
Robert Burns/Norman Hackerman (1951-1955, Vol. 98-102)
Cecil V. King/Norman Hackerman (1955-1968, Vol. 102-115)
Norman Hackerman (1969-1989, Vol. 116-136)
Barry Miller (1990-1994, Vol. 137-141)
Paul A. Kohl (1995-2007, Vol. 142-154)
Daniel Scherson (2008-2012, Vol. 155-159)
Petr Vanýsek (2012-2013, Vol. 159-160)
Robert Savinell (2013-present, Vol. 160-present)
The Electrochemical Society Monograph Series (1948-present)
ECS Monographs provide authoritative, detailed accounts on specific topics in electrochemistry and solid-state science and technology. Since the 1940s, ECS and noted publishers, such as John A. Wiley & Sons, have been cooperating to publish leading titles in these fields.
The Electrochemical Society Proceedings Series (PV — (1955-2005)
The Proceedings Volumes consisted of papers published from selected presentations made at ECS and ECS-sponsored meetings. They were published in both soft-cover and hard-cover through the years. Each volume had a different set of editors, too numerous to list here. In 2005, the PVs ceased publication under that title and were replaced by ECS Transactions.
Electrochemical Technology (1963-1968, Vol. 1-6)
Electrochemical Technology began publication in the early 1960s in response to ECS members’ desire for a publication covering electrochemical processes in the areas of engineering, technology, design, devices, and economics. It was published bimonthly until 1969 when the publication merged with JES.
Editors
Al Loonam (1963-1965, Vol. 1-3)
Norman Hackerman (1965-1968, Vol. 3-6)
The Electrochemical Society Interface (Interface — 1992-present, Vol. 1-present)
In 1992, “C” Sections news from JES was incorporated into Interface, a new publication which would allow JES to become purely technical. Interface is a quarterly gratis Open Access journal that provides ECS members with information affecting their society interests.
Editors
Paul A. Kohl (1992-1994, Vol. 1-3)
Lee P. Hunt (1995, Vol. 4)
Jan B. Talbot (1995-1998, Vol. 4-7)
Krishnan Rajeshwar (1999-2013, Vol. 8-22)
Petr Vanýsek, Co-Editor (2014-present, Vol. 23-present)
Vijay Ramani, Co-Editor (2014-present, Vol. 23-present)
Electrochemical and Solid-State Letters (ESL — 1998-2012, Vol. 1-15)
ESL was a joint publication between The Electrochemical Society and the IEEE Electron Devices Society. The journal consisted of brief letters-style articles, and was created as a faster means of disseminating innovative science before a full-length research paper could be written. In July 2012 this title ceased publication, and two new publications were created: ECS Electrochemistry Letters and ECS Solid State Letters.
Editors
Paul A. Kohl (1998-2003, Vol. 1-6)
Dennis W. Hess (2004-2012, Vol. 7-15)
ECS Transactions (ECST — 2005-present, Vol. 1-present)
This publication was created to replace the hard-cover books that were published as The Electrochemical Society Proceedings Volumes. ECST consists of papers published from selected presentations made at ECS and ECS-sponsored meetings. These papers are reviewed to ensure that submissions meet generally-accepted scientific standards. Each meeting is represented by a volume and each symposium by an issue.
Editors
John Weidner (2007-2012)
Jeffrey W. Fergus (2013-present)
ECS Electrochemistry Letters (EEL — 2012-2015, Vol. 1-4)
EEL launched in July 2012 to publish the electrochemistry papers that had been published in ESL. The journal ceased publication in 2015, in favor of allowing brief letters-style electrochemistry papers to be published in JES under a new article type called “Communication” articles.
Editors
Petr Vanýsek (2012-2013, Vol. 1-2)
Robert Savinell (2013-present, Vol. 2-4)
ECS Journal of Solid State Science and Technology (JSS — 2012-present, Vol. 1-present)
JSS launched in July 2012 to publish the solid state science and technology papers that had been published in JES. In addition to full-length research papers, the journal has now expanded to include brief letters-style papers published under the article type called “Communication” articles.
JSS began to feature special Focus Issues in 2013 in order to highlight scientific and technological areas of interest. Since then, over a dozen special issues have been published featuring topics such as oxide thin film transistors, printable functional materials, and micro-nano systems in health care and environmental monitoring.
Editors
Dennis W. Hess (2012-present, Vol. 1-present)
ECS Solid State Letters (SSL — 2012-2015, Vol. 1-4)
SSL launched in July 2012 to publish the solid state science and technology papers that had been published in ESL. The journal ceased publication in 2015, in favor of allowing brief letters-style papers in the same technical domain to be published in JSS under a new article type called “Communication” articles.
Editors
Dennis W. Hess (2012-2015, Vol. 1-4)
