Research Guides: Chemistry: Find Background and Property Information

Handbooks and Encyclopedias

Handbooks are great places to get started on finding information on your topic:

Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Useful for finding background information on chemical substances, including their properties, manufacturing, and uses, as well as industrial processes and unit operations in chemical engineering.
Content type: Encyclopedia articles
Coverage dates: 2000-2014
Previous versions of articles are archived for posterity.
Language: English
CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Start here when looking for chemical data and physical property values, as well as constants, conversion factors, and lab safety information.
Content type: Data and other reference materials
Includes an interactive periodic table, the ability to manipulate, graph, and export tabular data, and search for a compound by name, formula, property, structure, etc.
Language: English

Lange's handbook of chemistry
Includes SI unites, UIPAC nomenclature, laboratory methods, and more.
In print, this item is located in Honnold/Mudd Library Mudd Multi-Tier Stacks 3, Reference, Call number QD65 .L36 1992
Physical Reference Data
Reference data including physical constants, atomic and molecular properties, and spectroscopic data provided by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Physical Measurement Laboratory.

Merck Index Online This link opens in a new window
An encyclopedia on of chemical, drug, and biological substances. Run by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
Search by name, structure, CAS registry number, molecular formula, molecular weight, and other physical properties.
Language: English
Keywords: Royal Society of Chemistry RSC

NIST Chemistry WebBook
A source of property data on many organic compounds and a few common inorganic compounds. Maintained by the US Department of Commerce.
ChemSpider
A free resource maintained by the Royal Society of Chemistry that contains property and spectra information.
ChemExper Chemical Directory
A free search for chemical suppliers of over 9 million chemicals from 2,300 suppliers.
Common Chemistry
A quick look up for CAS Registry numbers for approximately 7,900 common chemicals of public interest.

Along with ChemSpider, NIST Chemistry WebBook there are several other sources for spectra:

SciFinder-n This link opens in a new window
Many substance records have experimental and calculated spectra. First time Scifinder users: Register for a web account (using your Claremont Colleges email).
SciFinder use is limited to Claremont Colleges students, faculty, and staff for educational purposes.
Language: English, Chinese, Japanese, etc.
Keywords: Chemical Abstracts

Spectral Database for Organic Compounds (SDBS)
Includes electron impact mass, Fourier transform infrared, proton NMR, 13C NMR, laser Raman, and electron spin resonance spectra for approximately 34,000 compounds. Maintained by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Japan.
Spectroscopy Data and Information: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Many large research libraries maintain lists of specialized resources. University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries is one example.

These sources are useful for identifying what companies sell what substances. They often provide property information for the substances they sell.

Chemical Register
A database for finding commercial sources for various substances.
Sigma-Aldrich
Contains information about compounds sold by Sigma-Aldrich