Reed College Library: Chemistry

There are many handbooks, dictionaries, and encyclopedias that describe chemical terms, structures, data, etc. If you are not clear about your topic, try establishing its limits with a good definition and some introductory information.

Before you get started, you might want to take a look at The Evolution of Scientific Information, which maps out the scientific publication process (NOTE: this chart was taken from a book published in 1979. Notice anything missing?) There is also a resource from the UCLA libraries called the Flow of Information which might help you understand the process.

AccessScience
Covers all of science; much information related to chemistry. Includes a scientific dictionary, images, and biographies of famous scientists. Also includes links to related websites.

Encyclopedia of Life Science
A comprehensive life sciences resource. The electronic version interacts with Nature's web site to provide links to relevant news/articles. Also includes illustrations, a glossary, and related web resources.

Macmillan Encyclopedia of Chemistry
Ref QD4 .M33 1997
Covers a broad range of topics that are generally associated with chemistry. Includes the sub-disciplines and branches of chemistry, as well as common substances and biographies of chemists "who made seminal contributions" to chemistry.

Guides to the Literature

Information Sources in Chemistry
Ref QD8.5 .I47 1992
Concise and well-organized. Chapters identify important books, core journals, and review publications in the areas of general, pure, and industrial chemistry.

How to Find Chemical Information
Ref QD8.5 .M34 1998
Good introduction to the "nature" of chemical information and the databases, reference works, and journals of chemistry. Also includes sections on patents and safety information.

Review Publications

Review publications contain articles that review the research already done in a given area. A review article can give you a synthesis of a particular topic and provide you with an extensive bibliography. All of the following review publications are shelved by title with the science periodicals. Holdings can be found by searching the Print & Electronic Journals page.

To identify review articles, most databases allow you to search by article type (review) or limit your search to reviews. Reed Library also subscribes to annual reviews and review journals. You can browse the annual reviews by title, or you can search by topic. These resources are available to the Reed community only. Off campus access is available.

Annual Review of … (search or browse all titles)
Reed subscribes to the entire collect of 38 Annual Review titles. A selection relevant to chemistry includes:

Chemical Reviews
Provides "authoritative, critical reviews and comprehensive summaries of recent research in all aspects of chemistry."

Chemical Society Reviews
Contains three types of articles: "personalized accounts of their own contributions by recognized authorities; in-depth articles covering the state-of-the-art of the subject under review; introductory reviews of new topics, suitable for non-specialist readers."

Current Opinion in …
Provides views of experts on current advances, as well as annotated excerpts from important papers.

Trends in...: A good place to find a shortish review article on a "hot" topic. Trends journals are indexed in Agricola and Web of Science.

Databases

BIOSIS Previews (1969 - present)
The most comprehensive biological database, covering a large range and number of bioscience journals and other publications.

Chemical Abstracts (1907 - present)
Comprehensive coverage of the literature of chemistry and related disciplines. Available in print (1988 – 2000) in the South Reference Room. For access to the electronic version, see the Science Librarian.

INSPEC (1898 - present)
The premier database for physics. Covers journals and conference proceedings in physics, electrical & electronic engineering, computing, and information technology.

PubMed (1966 - present)
Indexing of the biomedical literature. Includes microbiology and molecular biology and can be searched with many genetic, sequence, and taxonomic resources, including PubChem, a new resource that provides information on the biological activities of small molecules.

Web of Science with Biology Resources
Web-based version of Science Citation Index. Provides keyword and citation access to over 5,700 major science journals.

Journals and Journal Collections

Once you identify a citation for an article using a database, or if you just want to browse a journal title, you must determine if the library subscribes to the journal. At this time, the best way to do so is to use the Print & Electronic Journals page. For help, try How Do I Find Journal Articles?

If you haven't identified particular journals, but would like to see what Reed has access to, you can use the mostly complete subject lists available from the journal title list.

American Chemical Society (All publication years)
Searchable and browseable fulltext access to all of the ACS journals.

Institute of Physics (1874 - present)
Searchable and browseable fulltext access to the Institute of Physics journals.

Dictionaries, Terminology & Style

The ACS Style Guide
Ref QD8.5 .A25 2006
In addition to instructions for contributors of ACS journals, also contains an overview of preparing chemical literature and guidelines for oral presentations.

Gardner's Chemical Synonyms and Trade Names
Ref TP9 .G286 1999
Entries describe compounds (usually including chemical composition and use), or cross-reference to another name.

Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary
Ref QD5 .C5 2002
Quick reference for descriptions of chemicals and chemical phenomena. Source for trade names and CAS registry numbers.

Foreign Language Dictionaries

Callaham's Russian-English Dictionary of Science and Technology
Ref QD5 .C33 1995

Wiley's English-Spanish, Spanish-English Chemistry Dictionary
Ref QD5 .K294 1998

Encyclopedias & Handbooks

General

CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics
Ref Desk QD65 .H3 [year]
Standard reference source for chemical and physical data--constants, properties, etc. Earlier editions in the Stacks.

Encyclopedia of Computational Chemistry
Ref QD39.3 .E46 E53 1998
Includes definitions and articles dealing with "computer-driven approaches to chemistry." Also includes descriptions of relevant software.

Lange's Handbook of Chemistry
Ref QD65 .L36 2005
Contains conversion tables, physical properties, and thermodynamics data.

Merck Index
Ref Desk RS51 .M4 2006
Information, including literature citations, on over 10,000 significant chemicals, drugs and biological substances. Synonyms and trade names can be looked up in the "Cross Index." Also available in CD-ROM version in the North Reference room.

NIST-JANAF Thermochemical Tables
Ref QD511 .N57 1998
Thermodynamic and ion-energetics data. Online version available as NIST Chemistry Web Book. Searchable by name, formula, and CAS number.

Techniques of Chemistry
QD61 .T4
Compilation of methodology in chemical analysis and synthesis for organic and inorganic chemistry; arranged by “technical family”--e.g. instruments, electrochemical methods, spectroscopy, chromatography, etc. (14 "volumes", some in multiple parts = 30 actual volumes)

Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Ref QH575 .D535 1999
Definitions of over 7000 terms used in cell and molecular biology and genetics, neurobiology, physiology and immunology as they relate to molecular biology.

Encyclopedia of Hormones
Ref QP571 .E5 2003
Covers topics related to the study of all known hormones (in vertebrates, plants and insects). Each entry consists of an outline, an overview description, and a detailed treatment of the topic.

Encyclopedia of Immunology
Ref QR180.4 .E53 1998
Includes relevant readings, including review articles, cross-references, and crystallographic data.

Encyclopedia of Molecular Biology
Comprehensive reference source to the core topics of molecular biology and also includes general background material for those fields to which molecular biology. Length of entries vary from definition to encyclopedic.

The Enzyme Reference
Ref QP601 .P87 2002
Standard name, class, EC number, reaction information for classified and some unclassified enzymes. Includes over 6500 enzyme-catalyzed reactions with citations to the original paper and review articles, when available.

Enzyme Nomenclature
Ref QP601 .I56 1992
Revision of the 1984 Nomenclature Committee of the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Includes standard abbreviations and references.

Glossary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Ref QP512 .G55 1997
Short definitions of terms related to biochemistry. Names of enzymes, vitamins, hormones and other biochemical substances are not included.

Illustrated Dictionary of Immunology
Ref QR180.4 .C78 2003
Defines many of the basic terms of immunology. Illustrations include diagrams, charts, and structures.

Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Ref QP512 .O94 2000
Brief definitions of terms (including acronyms and abbreviations). Includes some structures.

Practical Handbook of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Ref QP514.2 .P73 1989
Divided into four major sections: Amino Acids and Proteins; Nucleosides, Nucleotides and Nucleic Acids; Lipids; and Physical-Chemical Data. Excellent source of fundamental biochemical information.

Laboratory/Safety

Ref T55.3.H3 B73 1999
Data on stability, flammability, etc. of specific compounds; potential violent interactions between compounds.

Chemical Technicians' Ready Reference Handbook
Ref QD61 .S58 1996
Covers all types of basic laboratory techniques, procedures, equipment, etc.

CRC Handbook of Laboratory Safety
Ref QD51 .C73 1995
Describes laboratory safety procedures and guidelines in accordance with government regulations.

Sax's Dangerous Properties of Industrial Materials
Ref T55.3 .H3 L494 2004
Hazard information on laboratory and industrial materials including toxicity, carcinogenicity, and mutagenecity; CA registry number and synonym cross-indexes.

Inorganic Chemistry

Dictionary of Inorganic Compounds
Ref QD148 .D53 1992
Includes coordination complexes, bioinorganic compounds, minerals and ores and other industrially important substances. Entries contain structures, formula weight, hazards data CAS registry numbers, stability and reference and usage information.

Encyclopedia of Inorganic Chemistry
Ref QD148 .E53 1994
Comprehensive coverage of inorganic chemistry and related topics. The 8-volume set includes organometallic, bioinorganic, and physical and theoretical topics, as relevant.

A Comprehensive Treatise on Inorganic & Theoretical Chemistry
QD151 .M52C
Authoritative, detailed treatment of the elements and their compounds, although now somewhat dated. Sequence follows periodic table. Extensive bibliographies.

Organic Chemistry

Comprehensive Organic Synthesis: Selectivity, Strategy, and Efficiency in Modern Organic Chemistry
QD262 .C535 1991

Comprehensive Organometallic Chemistry: The Synthesis, Reactions, and Structures of Organometallic Compounds
QD411 .C65 1982

Comprehensive Organometallic Chemistry II: A Review of the Literature 1982-1994
QD411 .C65 1995
Surveys of research conducted in the particular areas. Each title is a multi-volume set with it’s own index.

Dictionary of Organic Compounds
Ref QD246 .D5 1996
Valuable source of data on organic compounds, including constitution, physical and chemical properties, use, bibliographic references, toxicity information, CAS registry numbers. Arranged by "DOC" (chemical) name, with name and formula indexes.

Fieser's Reagents for Organic Synthesis (v. 19 - present)
QD262 .F54 1999
Standard reference work describing reagents of use to organic chemists; includes bibliographic references. v. 1 - 7 (QD262 .F5) is titled Reagents for Organic Synthesis, v. 8 - 17 (QD262 .F54 1980) is titled Fieser & Fieser's Reagents for Organic Synthesis.

Properties of Organic Compounds [computer file]
North Reference Room
Provides physical property and spectral data for over 27,500 organic chemical compounds. Data may be accessed by substructure searches, physical property searches, spectral peak searches, or any combination thereof.

Spectroscopy

The Aldrich Library of 13C and 1H FT NMR Spectra    Ref QC462.85 .A44 1993
The Aldrich Library of FT-IR Spectra    Ref QD96.I5 P66 1985
The Aldrich Library of Infrared Spectra, 2nd ed.     Ref QD96.I5 P67 1975
The Aldrich Library of NMR Spectra, 2nd ed.     Ref QD96.N8 P68 1983

Encyclopedia of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance     Ref QC762 .E53 1995
The Handbook of Infrared and Raman Spectra of Inorganic Compounds and Organic Salts     Ref QC457 .N927 1997
Practical Handbook of Spectroscopy     Ref QD95 .P73 1991
The Sadtler Handbook of Infrared Spectra     Ref QC453 .S73 1978

Library

Research Guide for Chemistry

Contact: Linda Maddux , Science Librarian

Getting Started