LibGuides: Chemistry: A Guide to Library Research: Overview

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.

U.S. Patent Office
The federal agency that grants patents and trademarks on new inventions, including chemicals and drugs.

Other sources for patent information

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.

Journal of the American Chemical Society
JACS "is the flagship journal of the American Chemical Society and the world's preeminent journal in all of chemistry and interfacing areas of science."

American Chemical Society Molecule of the Week

ACS Molecule of the Week
If you are looking for a research topic check out the Molecule of the Week put out by the American Chemical Society.

Frequently Used Databases

American Chemical Society Web Editions
The American Chemistry Society is where working chemists start to find out current research in their area. The ACS publications are written by chemists for an audience of chemists.
CHEMnetBASE
Collection of interactive chemistry databases. Search by Name, Synonym, Molecular Formula, CAS Registry Number, InChI, InChI Key, or SMILES.
Includes these databases:
- CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics
- Combined Chemical Dictionary
- Dictionary of Organic Compounds
- Dictionary of Natural Products
- Dictionary of Drugs
- Dictionary of Food Compounds
- Dictionary of Marine Natural Products
- Properties of Organic Compounds
- Polymers: A Property Database
A detailed review is available: http://www.istl.org/07-spring/electronic3.html
ScienceDirect (Elsevier Books & Journals Online)
ScienceDirect has non-ACS chemistry journals as well as interdisciplinary journals related to chemistry. This site also has e-books available.
Includes over 2,000 journals and 35,000 books published by Elsevier Science and its subsidiary publishers, including Academic Press, Cell Press, Pergamon, Mosby, and Saunders journals. Coverage is particularly strong for the life and physical sciences, medicine, and technical fields, but also includes some social sciences and humanities.

Includes chemistry, chemical engineering, clinical medicine, computer science, earth & planetary sciences, economics, engineering, energy & technology, environmental science & technology, life sciences, materials science, mathematics, physics, astronomy.
SpringerLink: Books, Journals, and More
SpringerLink has applied chemistry journals. This site also has e-books which can be downloaded by chapter or the entirety of the book.
Personal copies of some books can be purchased for $39.99 each through a service offered by Springer called MyCopy. The MyCopy offer is currently valid for over 14,000 Springer eBooks. More info about MyCopy.
Video tutorial: How to Use SpringerLink E-Books (2:14)

All Chemistry Databases, A-Z
You can filter results by database type (e-books, journals & articles, etc.).

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Chemistry: A Guide to Library Research

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Useful Tools for Chemistry Research

Welcome to the Chemistry Research Guide!

American Chemical Society Molecule of the Week

Frequently Used Databases