LibGuides: Chemistry: E-resources

Search Summon discovery service

Search Summon to find online journal articles and book chapters.

Key resources for chemists

Chemistry-specific resources

Use these to find literature and chemical information.

SciFinder-n This link opens in a new window
Chemical information, plus references to articles and patents in this subject.

Register to use SciFinder-n now (University username and password required)
Registration is subject to the terms of the CAS Privacy Policy
SciFinder is a key resource for chemistry-related research. Use it to find substance and reaction information and literature. Specifically you can use it to: identify a chemical substance and its related chemical structures; find chemical names, find regulatory information, and properties, including CAS Registry Numbers®; find reaction schemes; and view step-by-step experimental procedures, detailed conditions, and product yields. It gives references to journal articles and patents.

Also useful for researching in related areas such as: agricultural science; biomedical sciences; engineering; food; geological sciences; materials science; medical sciences; and physics.

More about SciFinder-n

Help and guidance
SciFinder-n support and training
reaxys This link opens in a new window
An integrated chemical information system. Use to find physical properties, structures and reactions. Includes inorganic (Gmelin) and organic chemistry (Beilstein). also gives references to articles and patents.
Includes:

-Beilstein Database - covers organic chemistry from 1771 to date. Based on Beilstein's Handbuch der organischen Chemie. It contains over 8.2 million structures, 10 million reactions (making it the world's largest reactions database), 20 million property records and 50 million hyperlinks. It also gives references to journal articles from 1980- present including abstracts and links to full text for articles Reading readers are entitled to access.

-Gmelin Database - covers inorganic and organometallic compounds from 1772 to (presently) 1995. It contains all the structural, factual, and bibliographic data cited in the Gmelin Handbuch der anorganischen Chemie. The database currently comprises over 1.5 million compounds, including glasses, alloys, ceramics, minerals and coordination compounds, and 1.3 million reactions.

-Patent Chemistry Database - Organic chemistry and life science patents from US (since 1976), World and European patent publications (since 1978).

Help and guidance
Help using Reaxys is available via the Reaxys Support Centre, and there are also training videos available.
RSC (Royal Society of Chemistry) [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Journal articles and e-books in chemistry.

The journal archive is also available via JISC Journal Archives.
Archive - full-text articles from all journals published by the RSC (and its forerunner societies) covering 1841 - 2007. List of titles included in the archive

Recent issues - full-text only of articles published in journals for which Reading has a current subscription.

Our e-book subscription covers over 120 titles in general chemistry and RSC food science e-books. Titles are listed on the Enterprise catalogue.
ACS Journals & Magazines [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Access to the full-text of American Chemical Society journals, including the archive.

General resources for finding literature

These sources cover all subjects but are very useful for finding chemistry-related publications.

Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Use to search across a number of databases covering a range of subject areas. Provides references to journal articles, books, conference papers, patents, research data and other materials.

To search the whole of Web of Science, select all databases from the drop down menu.
Web of Science gives access to a range of databases which can be searched individually or simultaneously:

-BIOSIS Previews - biological sciences
-Current Contents Connect
-Data Citation Index - research data from international repositories
-Derwent Innovations Index - patents in engineering
-FSTA (Food Science and Technology Abstracts)
-Medline - biomedical sciences
-Web of Science Core Collection - made up of the Arts and Humanities, Science, and Social Sciences Citation Indexes, plus a number of other databases

The cross-search also includes open access journals and open archive repositories.

Also available via Web of Science:

-JCR (Journal Citation Reports)

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Scopus This link opens in a new window
Gives references to journal articles, books, conference proceedings and patents in all subjects. Also offers extensive tools to analyse results, and measure impact for articles, journals and authors.
Scopus gives references to peer-reviewed literature in all subject areas. It includes journal articles (including 'in press' items), books, conference proceedings and patents.

It is possible to search for topics, authors (including by ORCID ID), author affiliation and funders.

Extensive analytical tools also allow you to:

-analyse your search results by year, source, author, affiliation, country or territory, document type and subject area
-compare journal impact to help you decide where to publish
-see the citation impact and scholarly community engagement for an article
-analyse the citation trend for any given article, set of results or for a list of author documents
-view an author profile to analyse and track an individual's citation history

Help and guidance
Scopus Quick Reference Guide (PDF)
Tutorial of creating alerts
Scopus learn & support site

Current Chemical Reactions [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Single- and multi-step new synthetic methods taken from leading journals and patents from 36 issuing authorities. The overall reaction flow is provided for each method, along with a detailed and accurate graphical representation of each reaction step.
This database is part of the Web of Science Core Collection. To search just this part select 'Current Chemical Reactions' from the 'Editions' option.

Covers 2008-

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Data Citation Index This link opens in a new window
Source records relating to research data available in web-based data repositories. Covers all scholarly disciplines.

Select Data Citation Index from the drop down menu when you reach the homepage.
The Data Citation Index contains source records relating to research data available in web-based data repositories and covers all scholarly disciplines.

Bibliographic source records comprise of three data types that include: Repositories, Data Studies, and Data Sets. These record types are linked in relationships to allow navigation from broadest level records to narrower level records.

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Derwent Innovations Index This link opens in a new window
Patent searching in chemical, electrical, electronic, and mechanical engineering.

Select Derwent Innovations Index from the drop down menu when you reach the homepage.
Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Index Chemicus This link opens in a new window
This database is part of the Web of Science and contains the structures and critical supporting data for novel organic compounds reported in leading international journals.

This database is part of the Web of Science Core Collection. To search just this part select 'Index Chemicus' from the 'Editions' drop down list.
Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Official Methods of Analysis of AOAC International [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Continuously updated methods of chemical analysis approved by AOAC International (formerly the Association of Official Analytical Chemists).

The AOAC username and password are required to access this resource. You will need to enter your University username and password to access this information.

Physical Sciences Data-science Service
Free access to high-quality, curated data resources. Including crystal structures; thermodynamics, chemical properties, and chemical availability. Includes the Cambridge Structural Database System.

reaxys This link opens in a new window
An integrated chemical information system. Use to find physical properties, structures and reactions. Includes inorganic (Gmelin) and organic chemistry (Beilstein). also gives references to articles and patents.
Includes:

-Beilstein Database - covers organic chemistry from 1771 to date. Based on Beilstein's Handbuch der organischen Chemie. It contains over 8.2 million structures, 10 million reactions (making it the world's largest reactions database), 20 million property records and 50 million hyperlinks. It also gives references to journal articles from 1980- present including abstracts and links to full text for articles Reading readers are entitled to access.

-Gmelin Database - covers inorganic and organometallic compounds from 1772 to (presently) 1995. It contains all the structural, factual, and bibliographic data cited in the Gmelin Handbuch der anorganischen Chemie. The database currently comprises over 1.5 million compounds, including glasses, alloys, ceramics, minerals and coordination compounds, and 1.3 million reactions.

-Patent Chemistry Database - Organic chemistry and life science patents from US (since 1976), World and European patent publications (since 1978).

Help and guidance
Help using Reaxys is available via the Reaxys Support Centre, and there are also training videos available.
SciFinder-n This link opens in a new window
Chemical information, plus references to articles and patents in this subject.

Register to use SciFinder-n now (University username and password required)
Registration is subject to the terms of the CAS Privacy Policy
SciFinder is a key resource for chemistry-related research. Use it to find substance and reaction information and literature. Specifically you can use it to: identify a chemical substance and its related chemical structures; find chemical names, find regulatory information, and properties, including CAS Registry Numbers®; find reaction schemes; and view step-by-step experimental procedures, detailed conditions, and product yields. It gives references to journal articles and patents.

Also useful for researching in related areas such as: agricultural science; biomedical sciences; engineering; food; geological sciences; materials science; medical sciences; and physics.

More about SciFinder-n

Help and guidance
SciFinder-n support and training

CentAUR - University of Reading institutional repository [partial full-text] This link opens in a new window
CentAUR (Central Archive at the University of Reading) is the University of Reading's institutional repository for research publications and equivalent research outputs.
Lists published items, including journal and conference proceedings, books and book sections, and other formats that constitute the research outputs of the University. Where copyright permits, the author's final versions of papers (that have been peer reviewed and accepted for publication), or the equivalent multimedia formats, are included. The main period covered is 2003 onwards. Find out more about CentAUR

Help and guidance
CentAUR help
Contact the CentAUR team for additional advice on using this resource
GreenFILE This link opens in a new window
Gives reference to journal articles covering all aspects of human impact to the environment across the disciplines of agriculture, education, law, health, and technology.
Topics covered include global climate change, green building, pollution, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, recycling, and more.

Gives references to journal articles (a few are available in full-text). Includes scholarly, government and general-interest titles.

Help and guidance
Help with searching GreenFILE on EBSCO
JCR (Journal Citation Reports) This link opens in a new window
Gives impact factors and other evaluative information for journals in the sciences and social sciences.

- Science and technology (over 7,350 leading journals covered)
- Social sciences (over 2,240 leading journals covered)
Journal evaluation - showing you the highest impact journals, most frequently used journals, hottest journals, and the largest journals.

Help and guidance
JCR quick reference card (PDF)
JCR guide
JCR training videos

Guides to using SciFinder

For support and videos covering specific aspects of using SciFinder-n, see the following website:

SciFinder training materials

Guides to using Reaxys

Reaxys quick reference guide
Reaxys Academy
A structured online course in which you will learn how to get started with Reaxys and how to apply this knowledge to enhance your learning on analytical, organic and inorganic chemistry.
Reaxys LibGuide
A guide for how to get started, search, personalize and take advantage of Reaxys.
Reaxys video tutorials
Includes videos on query building and structure drawing.

Literature searching guidance

This series of three videos (available via the tabs in this box) cover:

What is a literature search and tips on getting started
Finding journal articles and techniques to use, such as truncation and search operators
Using specialist chemistry resources (SciFinder and Reaxys) to find articles and chemical information

You will need to login using your University email address and password to view the videos.

We also have the following generic guides to literature searching and searching databases:

This video covers finding journal articles, including techniques to use, such as truncation and search operators.

This video covers using specialist chemistry resources (SciFinder and Reaxys) to find articles and chemical information.

Extra help on using SciFinder

SciFinder training materials
A range of videos and other tutorials on specific aspects of using SciFinder including structure and reaction searching.

Extra help on using reaxys

Reaxys quick reference guide
Reaxys Academy
A structured online course in which you will learn how to get started with Reaxys and how to apply this knowledge to enhance your learning on analytical, organic and inorganic chemistry.
Reaxys LibGuide
A guide for how to get started, search, personalize and take advantage of Reaxys.
Reaxys video tutorials
Includes videos on query building and structure drawing.

Accessing online Library resources

If you are on campus you will be able to access most e-journals and e-books, and some databases, without entering a username and password because your IP address identifies you as being at the University of Reading.

For any that require a login, see the Off-campus tab.

Terms of Use

When you use our e-resources you are agreeing to our Terms of Use. Please take a moment to look at these by following the link below:

Terms and conditions of use for Library e-resources

When you are off-campus you will need to login to identify yourself as a member of the University of Reading to gain access to our protected databases, e-books and e-journals.

Your login details

You login in the same way as for Blackboard - via Microsoft. Just enter your University username followed by @student.reading.ac.uk (e.g. ab123456@student.reading.ac.uk) and your password. If this is the first time you have logged in via this method when off-campus you will be asked to complete a Multi-Factor Authentication. For more information see:

Find out more about multi-factor authentication

Getting to the login page...

For most resources, if you follow a link from our website or catalogues your login will be picked up automatically or you will be prompted to login straightaway.
If you access resources via another route you will need to look for a login option once you reach the resource you are trying to access. Look for an institutional or shibboleth login option and pick 'University of Reading' from a list of institutions. This will then pick up your login or prompt you to login. For more information about institutional login, please see the link below:

Find out more about the Institutional login

Logging in to Library resources

Watch this short video on how you login to use Library resources.

Getting items not held at Reading

Our Inter-Library Loans service can get articles, books and other publications not held at Reading from other libraries (usually from the British Library).

For more information see our webpages:

Inter-library loans service
Use this service to get publications not held at the University of Reading.