Chemistry Library Guide

In this Guide

Core Resources

PubChem - Content type: articles. A database of chemical molecules and their activities against biological assays. The system is maintained by the National Center for Biotechnology.

PubMed - Content type: articles. Contains more than 30 million citations and abstracts of biomedical literature.

Science Reference Center - Content type: articles, books, video. Includes reference books, journals, biographies, images, and videos on the topics of biology, chemistry, life science and more.

Stephens Library Catalog - Content type: books, video. Search the traditional catalog for Stephens College books, videos, and more.

Stephens Library Quick Search - Content types: articles, books. Search across most all of Stephens Library holdings as well as millions of additional books and articles using the EBSCOhost Discovery Service.

Librarian for Chemistry

Emma Fernandez (she/her)
efernandez@stephens.edu
(573) 441-5129

Book an appointment with me!

Library Contact Info

library@stephens.edu
Front Desk: (573) 876-7182
Text the Library: (573) 475-4211
Chat (when available)

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Finding Chemistry Books

Library Resources

AccessMedicine - Contains the full text of more than 130 medicine-related books, as well as more than 900 cases, 1,000 videos, and 11,000 Q&As. Note that you must create a personal account with AccessMedicine in order to access cases, the self-assessment, download bulk images, and to create favorites/folders.

Stephens Library Catalog - Search the traditional catalog for Stephens College books, videos, and more.

MOBIUS Catalog - Search the MOBIUS Consortium catalog and request physical/print books be sent to Stephens for pickup. Books are generally ready to be picked up in two to three work days.

eMO Electronic Books - Search and view over 250,000 electronic books. Entirely full-text.

Physical Book Locations

Books about chemistry are generally located in the following sections (the second floor of the Stephens Library):

  • Q - Science (General)

    • QD1-999 - Chemistry

  • QD1-65 - General

  • QD71-142 - Analytical Chemistry

  • QD146-197 - Inorganic Chemistry

  • QD241-441 - Organic Chemistry

    • QD415-436 - Biochemistry

  • QD450-801 - Physical and Theoretical Chemistry

    • QD625-655 - Radiation Chemistry

  • QD701-731 - Photochemistry

Please don’t hesitate to ask for assistance.

Search Tips

Search the Stephens Library Catalog to find physical materials and eBooks held at Stephens Library. The MOBIUS Catalog is also a good option to broaden your search for print books to libraries across Missouri.

Try using the phrase “chemistry” to get started, or use more specific terms for the field you’re researching.

Use the advanced search function and search for these phrases as subject terms to find materials about that term (rather than narrowing to a specific title).

Here are some other examples:

  • Atoms

  • Molecules

In addition, use the filters on the left hand side of the catalog to narrow or broaden your search.

  • Availability (Online vs. At The Library)

  • Found In (Subject, Title, Author, etc.)

  • Format (E-Book, Book/Print. DVD, etc.)

  • Language (English, Spanish, etc.)

  • Publish Date (use the sliding bar to create a timeline)

  • Place (U.S., Canada, etc.)

eMO Ebooks - Health Information

Search by:

  • Source type

  • Subject

  • Language

  • Category

Finding Articles

Library Resources

PubChem - A database of chemical molecules and their activities against biological assays. The system is maintained by the National Center for Biotechnology.

PubMed - PubMed contains more than 30 million citations and abstracts of biomedical literature. Learn More.

Science Reference Center - Includes reference books, journals, biographies, images, and videos on the topics of biology, chemistry, life science and more.

Stephens Library Quick Search - Search across most all of Stephens Library holdings as well as millions of additional articles using the EBSCOhost Discovery Service. Learn More.

Search Tips

Break your research question into essential key words and connect with AND.

  • Use synonyms and connect them with OR.

    • adolescents OR adolescence OR teens OR teenagers OR young adults

  • Put quotes around a term that’s a phrase to keep the words together.

    • “salicyclic acid”

  • When you find a good article, look at the works cited or reference list at the end to help identify other useful resources on the same topic.

When searching these databases, you will likely come across articles that are not immediately available. In such cases, choose to “Request It” and complete the process. Articles usually become available within one business day, although it can take as many as five days. You can review your request history and make requests from scratch using Interlibrary Loan.

Free Online Chemical Databases

ChemID Plus - Search by chemical name, structure, toxicity and physical properties via the National Library of Medicine/NIH.

ChemSpider - A free chemical structure database provided by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

CompTox Chemicals Dashboard - Developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency.

NIST Chemistry WebBook - Provides thermochemical, thermophysical, and ion energetics data compiled by NIST under the Standard Reference Data Program. Provided by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Last updated in 2025.