Research Guides: Chem 300: Analytical Chemistry (Fall 2015): Reference Sources

Links

CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics

CHEMnetBASE This link opens in a new window
Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, Combined Chemical Dictionary, Dictionary of Natural Products, Dictionary of Organic Compounds, Dictionary of Drugs, Dictionary of Inorganic and Organometallic Compounds, Dictionary of Commonly Cited Compounds, Dictionary of Marine Natural Products, Dictionary of Food Compounds, Dictionary of Carbohydrates, Polymers: A Property Database, Properties of Organic Compounds.
CHEMnetBASE includes: Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, Combined Chemical Dictionary, Dictionary of Natural Products, Dictionary of Organic Compounds, Dictionary of Drugs, Dictionary of Inorganic and Organometallic Compounds, Dictionary of Commonly Cited Compounds, Dictionary of Marine Natural Products, Dictionary of Food Compounds, Dictionary of Carbohydrates, Polymers: A Property Database, Properties of Organic Compounds.
Merck Index Online This link opens in a new window
The Merck Index is a fully-searchable database with over 11,500 monographs on chemicals, drugs, and biologicals.
The new online edition also includes historical records not available in the print edition. In addition, the Merck Index includes a reference of over 500 named organic reactions and reference tables that include common abbreviations, chemical structures, constants, and conversions.

Sigma-Aldrich
One of the leading chemical production companies in the world. They provide free information on all chemicals they produce.

PubChem This link opens in a new window
Repository of chemical data focusing on biological activities of small molecules. Find physical, biological, and chemical properties, and relationships to health and disease.
ChemSpider This link opens in a new window
This free chemical database collates structure and property information from both experiments and predictions. Also includes curated list of literature and datasets relating to a chemical.

Reference Sources

What is the boiling point of methanol? What is the molecular weight of ferrocene? How hot can I heat hexane before the flash point?

These are all questions that are answered using chemical reference sources. These sources vary, they can be dictionaries, encyclopedias, databases, spreadsheets, charts, etc. You may be thinking, why should I use one of these resources? I can just look it up in Wikipedia.

But the problem is, chemistry can be quite dangerous. Do you trust 100 percent the values and statistics on Wikipedia? Especially if you are looking up a boiling point, flash point, or toxicity information? This is why chemical dictionaries and other reference sources exist to provide reliable information that you do not have to second guess.

You may have been asked to use one of the various resources listed to the left in a previous course (general or organic chemistry). Refer to the questions listed in your assignment and answer them by using one or more of the resources to the left. Not all of these resources cover the same material; you may have to try a different source if you cannot find your answer in the first one.