Lab Reports: Gathering Basic Data on a Chemical
This page discusses advice and sources useful for the "Molecule Report" assignment in organic chemistry lab courses. But you can also use these sources for basic lab report data requirements.
Choosing a Substance for your Molecule Report
- Types of compounds with more background available: well-known organic compounds and major commodity chemicals (such as ethylene, benzene, etc.); major drugs and bioactive compounds; important dyes and pesticides; etc.
- Types of compounds that may prove more difficult: Food and consumer product ingredients; lesser known or newer drugs; biological substances (such as proteins, hormones, etc.); complex polymers; the obscure and unusual.
Background
- Names and Synonyms can vary and make consistent searching difficult. There are all sorts of naming conventions in use. You need to establish that the names you use match the actual structure in question. Common or generic names and trade names are easier to remember and are often used as shorthand, but they may not be very specific. Structure-based systematic names such as IUPAC names are harder to remember, and are more subject to variation across different sources. More Information
- CAS Registry Numbers (looks like [1234-56-7]) are excellent stand-ins for chemical names. They are highly specific to a particular structure (watch out for stereoisomers and drug forms). RNs can be found in most of the sources below. Make sure to note your compound's RN as soon as you find it, and use it for further searching in other sources. More Information
- Chemical properties include basic characterization data such as molecular weight, density, melting and boiling points, refractive index, etc. These are easy to find for most small organics in most of the handbooks and databases such as those listed below.
- Historical information may be hard to find. Not all molecules were "discovered" and these details are rarely mentioned in most sources. For drugs and synthetic compounds, the first patent or published synthesis may be identified in some sources. For natural products, you may be able to identify the first isolation. Remember that many chemicals may have been first characterized more than a century ago!
- "Recent" research on a well-known compound will be highly specialized and found in journal or periodical articles. You can easily find these using a database such as Google Scholar or Web of Science, but you'll get massive results unless you really focus your search topic and limit by date. Another thing to remember is that an article that happens to mention your compound is not necessarily - and probably isn't - about your compound. Context matters. Also, UT-Austin may not have access to some articles you find this way; in that case just select another one.
Cite your Sources
Get in the habit of citing all your sources in a lab report. See the
Style Guides page for information on citation formats and links to examples.
Print vs. Web is an artificial distinction. Get in the habit of citing only authoritative sources. It's the quality and reliability that matters most; your mode of access does not. However, you should avoid miscellaneous web pages of unclear authorship or date, and stick with published content such as handbooks, books, journals, databases, and patents.
Best Starting Points
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Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology is an excellent background source for important industrial chemicals. Articles on major chemicals and chemical classes cover history, uses, economics, production, chemical and physical data, with extensive bibliographies. The print edition is shelved in the Reference collection at TP 9 K54 2004; start with the Index volume.
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The Merck Index is available on the library's handbook table. The Merck provides brief profiles of common compounds and pharmaceuticals, including uses, and sometimes cites the first reported synthesis. Use the synonym index to locate the correct entry.
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CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics is the best-known single-volume tool for reliable property data. Use it online or in print in the library. The large table on ~26,000 organic compounds is arranged by chemical name and has its own synonym index. The print volume index does not list individual compounds.
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Combined Chemical Dictionary is a database of structures, names and basic properties of over 500,000 compounds, with a selected bibliography for each main entry.
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Material Safety Data Sheets describe hazards and safety procedures. MSDS for most commercially available products can be found on the web. NOTE: MSDS are not reliable for physical property data. You can also use the Sigma-Aldrich Library of Chemical Safety Data, a 2-volume set located on the library's handbook table.
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Reaxys is a retrospective database of millions of structures and reactions and associated property data and literature references. Under the Substances tab, go to Substance Data > Identification Data form and enter search terms. It's a good place to verify the first synthesis of a compound, but it can be confusing for beginners.
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Wikipedia articles can be a good starting point, but don't rely exclusively on it. Wikipedia's ChemBox section provides some property data, but if a value is not referenced or marked with a  you should confirm it in another source before trusting it. The article's bibliography can point you to other sources. It's generally not acceptable to cite Wikipedia in a formal scientific report.
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The Library Catalog can be searched for books about a particular chemical or class of chemicals. However, only the best-known compounds might have an entire book written about them. And some of those might be quite old and possibly in remote storage.
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