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Chemistry

The following is a selected list of resources for starting research in Chemistry. For further assistance, contact Brian Westra, Science Library.

Starting Your Research

These sources can help you identify a topic for your research, provide an overview of a specific issue or topic, and suggest other materials which might be useful for your research.

  • Encyclopedias and Other Reference Sources
    Subject encyclopedias usually provide essay type articles and a list of citations, and thus can be a very useful starting point. General chemistry encyclopedias are located in Science Reference, at the beginning of the QD section. There also are chemical dictionaries and handbooks in this section that may be useful. More specialized references in chemical sub-disciplines will be located elsewhere in Science Reference QD; also in QP (biochemistry/molecular biology), TA (materials science) and TP (chemical technology.) Below are some titles that may be helpful.
    • Chemistry : Foundations and Applications. [QD4 .C48 2004] 4 volumes
    • Dictionary of Chemical Names and Synonyms. [TP9 .H65 1992]
    • Encyclopedia of Biological Chemistry. [QD415.A25 E53 2004] 4 volumes
    • Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology, 3rd ed. [Q123 .E497 2002]
      This 18-volume work covers physics, chemistry, engineering and materials science.
    • Encyclopedia of Polymer Science & Technology [TP1110 .E53 2003] 12 volumes
    • Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary. [QD5. C5 2007]
    • Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. [TP9 .E685 1991] 27 volumes-use the index in the last volume!
    • Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. [QD415.A25 O94 2000]
    • Van Nostrand's Encyclopedia of Chemistry. [QD4 .V36 2005]

  • Inorganic Chemistry
    • Comprehensive Coordination Chemistry. [QD474.C65 1987] 7 volumes
    • Dictionary of Inorganic Compounds. [QD148 .D53 1992] 5 volumes + supplement(s)
    • Inorganic Materials Chemistry Desk Reference. [TP200 .S26 1997]
    • Inorganic syntheses. [QD151 .A115]

  • Organic Chemistry
    • Comprehensive Organic Synthesis. [QD262 .C535 1991]
    • Dictionary of Organic Compounds. [QD246 .D5 1982 and supplements]
    • Dictionary of Organometallic Compounds. [QD411 .D53 1984]
    • Handbook of Data on Organic Compounds. [QD257.7 .H36 1994]
    • Handbook of Organic Chemistry. [QD521.2 .B4813 1996b]
    • Names, Synonyms, and Structures of Organic Compounds: A CRC Reference Handbook. [QD291 .N36 1995]
    • Reagents for Organic Synthesis. (Fieser and Fieser) [QD262 .F5]
    • Vogel's Textbook of Organic Chemistry. [QD261 .V63 1989]
  • Tables of Contents
    You might want to browse through the tables of contents of recent chemistry journals such as Accounts of Chemical Research, Chemical and Engineering News (C&EN), Journal of Chemical Education, and Trends in Biochemistry for current topic or laboratory project ideas. You will find them on the Current Journals shelves in the Science Library, shelved alphabetically by title.
  • Style Guides

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    Finding Articles

    To look for articles in journals, newspapers, or magazines, you will need to start with an index. An index will allow you to look by subject or a few keywords which describe your topic, or by author. See also Review Articles, above.
    In most of these databases, you can click on the button to see if the UO has the article in electronic full-text. If not, you can check if the UO Libraries own a print copy of the journal containing an article you want, or request it from another library.

    • SciFinder Scholar
      SciFinder Scholar is a desktop client for searching Chemical Abstracts Online, and related databases. Chemical Abstracts is the most comprehensive index available for the chemical literature. If you want SciFinder Scholar on your own computer, the software must be downloaded and installed; most library computers already have it available from (on Windows) the Start menu, under programs. The link above will take you to a page that verifies your status at the UO so that you can download SciFinder Scholar.
    • Chemical Abstracts in print [Z5523.C4] is shelved in the Science Library Abstracts & Indexes area.
    • BIOSIS (Biology)
      BIOSIS covers the literature of biology and biomedicine, including molecular biology, biochemistry, and biophysics. Information is available from 1996 to the present. From within this database, click on "Remote Link" to see if the UO has the article in electronic full-text. If not, you can check if the UO Libraries own a print copy of the journal containing an article you want, or request it from another library.
    • Medline
      Medline covers all aspects of biomedicine including molecular biology, genetics, pharmacology, pharmaceutics, etc., from 1966 to the present. From within this database you can check if the UO Libraries own the journal containing an article you want, and if not, request an interlibrary loan. You may also search the same database via PubMed.
    • Natural Products Update
      A specialized database providing current information in natural product chemistry, searchable by authors, journal name, non-plant sources, taxonomic names, biological activity, compound class and trivial names. January 2000 to date.
    • Web of Science
      The web version of the Science Citation Index (as well as the Social Sciences Citation Index) from 1975 to the present. This interdisciplinary database allows you to find out who has cited a known reference, as well as search for current research articles by author, topic, etc.
    • When all else fails: try Google Scholar - a mixed bag of articles and other scholarly publications, but it does search the full-text of articles, where available.

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    Finding Books

    • UO Library Catalog
      Identify books by topic, title or author; identify journals and magazines owned by the UO Library. To find journal articles on your topic, use the databases listed in the section above. Once you have a citation, you can check the library catalog by doing a title search on the name of the journal to see if we have it here.
    • Summit: The Orbis Cascade Alliance Union Catalog
      A library catalog that combines information from Northwest academic libraries into a single unified database, putting millions of items at your fingertips. Look here first for books the UO does not own or that are not available for checkout. UO students and faculty may borrow books from Orbis-Cascade institutions by selecting the 'Request Item' option. Within 3 days the book requested should be on hold for you at the Knight Library, or, with one more day, the Science Library. You can request books and some other types of material, but not journal articles.
    • WorldCat
      WorldCat provides access to library catalogs from around the world. The database contains bibliographic records describing books, journals, maps, musical scores, manuscripts, etc.

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    People & Organizations

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    Handbooks, Tables & Reference Data

    You also will find handbooks under specific chemical sub-disciplines above. All of the books listed below are located in Science Reference.

    • ChemFinder.com: A search utility for finding chemical property information; limited, but free.
    • Composite Index for CRC Handbooks. [QD65 .C74 1991]. CRC publishes many different specialized handbooks. Even the same handbook may have different data in different editions. This index can help you to locate the exact book you need.
    • ChemIDplus provides numerous chemical synonyms, structures, regulatory list information, and links to other databases containing information about chemical substances cited in National Library of Medicine (NLM) databases.
    • Conversion of Units: Allows you to enter a numerical value, select a unit, and convert it to another unit.
    • CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. [QD65 .C4 -- latest two editions in Reference]
    • ESIS: European chemical Substances Information System Property and toxicity information; searchable by substance name, molecular formula and CAS Registry No.
    • Fundamental Physical Constants
    • Index to Physical, Chemical and Other Property Data from Arizona State University. Some of the online resources are for ASU only, but many of the books indexed can be found in the UO Science Library.
    • Lange's Handbook of Chemistry. [QD65 .L362 1999, 2005]
    • Landolt-Börnstein Index We don't have access to the full-text online, but this will help you find the print volume and page number. [QC61 .L33]
    • Materials Properties Locator Database from SUNY Buffalo. Helps to locate reference books containing property data. Searchable by property and type of material. The UO Science Library will have some, but not all, of these books.
    • Merck Index. [RS51 .M4 1996]
    • NIST Chemistry WebBook: National Institute of Standards and Technology thermochemical, thermophysical and spectral data for thousands of compounds and reactions.
    • Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) -- these are a good source of property and toxicity information on compounds. Here are some sources:
    • MMRShiftDB An open access NMR database for compound identification and support for computer-assisted structure elucidation. Contains about 10,000 structures and assigned spectra, with new datasets constantly added.
    • Periodic Table of the Elements. Here are some online, searchable tables with a variety of information about each element:
    • Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook [TP151 .P45 1984]
    • PubChem -- From the National Library of Medicine, "provides information on the biological activities of small molecules." Includes some basic property information.
    • Sigma-Aldrich Chemical Company product information - Online versions of the Sigma-Aldrich catalogs; source of property information.
    • Solv-DB -a database of physical-chemical data and other information on solvents
    • Spectral Database for Organic Compounds, SDBS - IR, 13C-NMR, 1H-NMR, ESR, MS and Raman spectra, including chemical shift values and MS peak and intensity.
    • Tables Relocated or Removed from CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 71st through 79th editions
    • ThermoDex -- "An Index of Selected Thermodynamic and Physical Property Resources", searchable by property and compound type. Again, the UO will not have all of these sources.
    • ToxNet - a cluster of databases on toxicology, hazardous chemicals, and related areas from the National Library of Medicine. Many kinds of reference data available.

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    Web Resources

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    Prepared by Victoria Mitchell, Head, Science Library
    (541) 346-3076 • vmitch@uoregon.edu
    Last modified 23 December 2005 (dpw)
    http://libweb.uoregon.edu/guides/chemistry/index.html