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Chemistry: A Guide to Library Research

Welcome to the Chemistry Research Guide!

This page includes online resources and some print resources for chemistry research. Please contact a librarian if you don't know where to start or have a specific information need.

Most chemists will go to one of two resources while investigating a topic: the journal literature or the patent literature. To get into the chemical literature most chemists will start with Chemical Abstracts. Students can now access Chemical Abstracts via SciFinderⁿ. You can ask a librarian for help setting up a SciFinderⁿ account.


This page is broken down by the major divisions within chemistry. Use the tabs to the left to research your topic. The Journal of the American Chemical Society is one place to get ideas for a research topic.

American Chemical Society Molecule of the Week

Frequently Used Databases