Physical Sciences & Engineering
Chemistry research: databases, standards, data policy and lab safety
Chemistry research runs on a small set of shared tools and rules. Literature, substance and reaction searching goes through CAS SciFinder, from CAS, whose parent organisation is the American Chemical Society, and Elsevier's Reaxys, which draws on journals, patents and the former Beilstein and Gmelin handbooks. PubChem, maintained by NCBI at the US National Library of Medicine, is the main free resource; its 2024 update counted about 119 million compounds and 1.67 million bioassays. Preprints go to ChemRxiv, opened in 2017 by the American Chemical Society, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the German Chemical Society. Crystal structures are searched and deposited through the Cambridge Structural Database.
Structures are named and described under IUPAC rules and identified by InChI, developed by IUPAC and the InChI Trust, with a 27-character InChIKey for searching. Publishers increasingly ask for data: the ACS Research Data Policy sets journal levels from 1 to 4, prefers community repositories that issue persistent identifiers, and in a pilot requires a data availability statement in Organic Letters and The Journal of Organic Chemistry.
In US laboratories, OSHA's Laboratory Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1450, requires a written chemical hygiene plan, reviewed at least annually, and named personnel responsible for it. At NSF, chemistry is funded through programmes from Chemical Synthesis to Chemistry of Life Processes, plus the Centers for Chemical Innovation.
New to the field? What is Chemistry? →
Reviewed 5 November 2026 by CASRAI Editorial Board
- CAS SciFinder product page(read 5 November 2026)
- CAS about page (ACS listed as parent organization)(read 5 November 2026)
- Elsevier Reaxys product page(read 5 November 2026)
- PubChem database update paper, Nucleic Acids Research, published 2024 (PMC)(read 5 November 2026)
- Wikipedia: ChemRxiv (operators, 2017 opening)(read 5 November 2026)
- CCDC Cambridge Structural Database page(read 5 November 2026)
- IUPAC who we are(read 5 November 2026)
- InChI Trust: about the InChI standard(read 5 November 2026)
- ACS Research Data Policy(read 5 November 2026)
- ACS data guidelines(read 5 November 2026)
- OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1450(read 5 November 2026)
- NSF MPS Chemistry(read 5 November 2026)
- NSF Centers for Chemical Innovation(read 5 November 2026)
Field at a glance
Preprints and indexes
- CAS SciFinder
- Web platform from CAS for chemical substance, reaction, literature and patent searching, with CAS Registry Numbers, supplier data and retrosynthesis tools.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- Reaxys (Elsevier)
- Elsevier chemistry database of reactions, substances and properties drawn from journals, patents and the former Beilstein and Gmelin handbooks.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- PubChem (NCBI)
- Free NIH chemical database maintained by NCBI; its 2024 update counted about 119 million compounds, 322 million substances and 1.67 million bioassays.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- ChemRxiv
- Open access chemistry preprint server, opened in 2017 by ACS, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the German Chemical Society; the Chinese and Japanese societies joined in 2019.Website ↗ · Our guide →
Archives, facilities and data
- Cambridge Structural Database (CCDC)
- The CCDC's database of molecular crystal structures, which it calls the world's largest; researchers search it and deposit new structures through the CCDC.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- ACS data guidelines by subfield
- ACS guidance on depositing primary NMR files, computational coordinates (not as SI tables or PDFs), simulation inputs and checkCIF output for crystallography.Website ↗
Standards and formats
- InChI and InChIKey
- Structure-based chemical identifier developed by IUPAC and the InChI Trust; the InChIKey is a fixed 27-character hashed form suited to search engines.Website ↗
- ACS Research Data Policy
- Sets journal data levels 1 to 4, endorses FAIR, prefers community repositories that issue DOIs or accession numbers; a data availability statement is required in a pilot.Website ↗
- OSHA Laboratory Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1450
- Applies to laboratory use of hazardous chemicals; requires a written chemical hygiene plan, reviewed at least annually, with named personnel responsible for it.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- OSHA laboratories safety topic page
- OSHA's overview noting the Laboratory standard was created specifically for non-production laboratories, alongside other standards covering lab chemical hazards.Website ↗ · Our guide →
Funders and programmes
- NSF MPS Chemistry programmes
- NSF chemistry funds individuals, small teams and cross-programme work through nine programmes, including Chemical Synthesis, Chemical Catalysis and Chemistry of Life Processes.Website ↗
- NSF Centers for Chemical Innovation (CCI)
- Two-phase NSF centre programme for long-term fundamental chemistry problems: Phase I up to about $1.8M over three years, Phase II up to about $4M a year for five years.Website ↗
Societies
- IUPAC - International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry
- Founded in 1919; sets standards for chemical nomenclature, terminology, measurement methods and atomic weights, and names new elements.Website ↗
- CAS (American Chemical Society)
- Scientific information organisation of over 100 years whose listed parent organisation is the American Chemical Society; produces SciFinder and STN.Website ↗
Journals
- Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS)
- The American Chemical Society's flagship journal, established by the society in 1879.Website ↗
91 pages across 11 topic areas
Laboratory Operations & Safety
- Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy: Flame vs Graphite Furnace, Lamp Selection and Detection Limits
How to choose between flame and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy, select the right lamp, read element-by-element wavelengths and detect…
- Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES): How It Works and What It Measures
How Auger electron spectroscopy generates a surface-elemental signal, why it samples only the top few nanometers, how it compares to XPS, and how rese…
- Building an Analytical Calibration Curve: Linear Range, R-squared and Back-Calculating a Concentration
How to build an analytical calibration curve from a standard set, read slope/intercept/R-squared and residuals, and back-calculate an unknown concentr…
- Chemical Hygiene Plan Training: What OSHA Requires Labs to Provide Employees
What OSHA's Laboratory Standard actually requires: when Chemical Hygiene Plan training must happen, what topics it must cover, and how labs document i…
- Chemistry Stockroom: How It Works, Procurement, and Safety Requirements
How chemistry, chem, and biochemistry stockrooms operate: procurement, dispensing, redistribution, and safety storage requirements for lab managers.…
- Choosing a Chemical Inventory Management System for Your Lab
A buying guide to chemical inventory management software: what it does, why spreadsheets fail at audit, the regulatory drivers, how it differs from a…
- Column Chromatography: Packing the Column, Choosing a Solvent System and Collecting Fractions
A procedural guide to column chromatography: choosing silica mesh size and column dimensions, selecting a solvent system from TLC Rf values, packing a…
- Dynamic Light Scattering: Z-Average, PDI and How to Read a DLS Report
What Z-average and PDI actually mean, a PDI band table for reading sample quality, and a worked walkthrough of why intensity, volume and number distri…
- Gas Chromatography: Columns, Carrier Gases and Detectors Explained
How to choose a GC column, carrier gas, and detector, plus a fault-isolation troubleshooting guide for peak shape, retention and baseline faults, with…
- Green Chemistry in the Lab: A Practical Guide to Solvent, Reagent, and Setup Selection
How to apply green chemistry principles to real purchasing and setup decisions in a working lab: choosing greener solvents and reagents, using solvent…
- Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200) in the Research Laboratory: What Actually Applies
OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard applies to laboratories only in part. 29 CFR 1910.1200(b)(3) imposes exactly four duties; the written program, wo…
- How to Write and Maintain a Chemical Hygiene Plan (OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1450)
A step-by-step guide to drafting and maintaining an OSHA-compliant Chemical Hygiene Plan under 29 CFR 1910.1450, from designating a Chemical Hygiene O…
- HPLC: Columns, Mobile Phases, and a Peak-Problem Troubleshooting Table
A practical HPLC reference covering the instrument flow path, normal- vs. reversed-phase, column chemistry (C18/C8/phenyl/HILIC), mobile-phase prepara…
- Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry: Delta Notation, Reference Standards and Reporting
A guide to isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) delta notation: the formula, the VPDB/VSMOW/AIR/VCDT reference standards, a worked per mil calculati…
- LC-MS Explained: How Liquid Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry Are Coupled
How liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry are actually coupled: ionization sources (ESI, APCI, APPI), mass analyzers (quadrupole, TOF, Orbitrap,…
- Limit of Detection vs Limit of Quantitation: How to Calculate LOD and LOQ
LOD vs LOQ compared directly, with two worked calculations — the blank/calibration-curve standard-deviation method and the signal-to-noise ratio metho…
- Mass Spectrometry Imaging (MSI): Workflow, Matrix Selection and Annotation Confidence
A practical MSI workflow guide: choosing MALDI, DESI or SIMS by resolution and analyte class, sectioning and matrix application that preserve spatial…
- Molecular Dynamics Simulation: Guide & Protocols
A guide to molecular dynamics simulation: integration algorithms, thermodynamic ensembles, force field parameters, and reproducible computational work…
- Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA): How It Works, Types, and Limits
How neutron activation analysis works: INAA, PGAA and delayed neutron counting compared, a sourced workflow, interference limits and questions for an…
- Pittcon: The Analytical Chemistry Conference and Expo
What Pittcon is: the annual laboratory science conference and expo run by a Pittsburgh non-profit, its program parts, and how its proceeds fund outrea…
- Powder Diffraction File (PDF): ICDD's Reference Database for XRD Phase Identification
The Powder Diffraction File (PDF) is the ICDD's curated reference database of powder X-ray diffraction patterns used to identify crystalline phases by…
- Reactive Chemicals: Water-Reactive and Pyrophoric Compound Handling
What makes a chemical pyrophoric or water-reactive under OSHA/GHS, common lab examples (alkali metals, alkyllithiums, metal hydrides), storage and ine…
- Size Exclusion Chromatography: Column Selection, Calibration and Molecular Weight Determination
How to calculate Kav from V0, Ve and Vt, build a log(MW) calibration curve, and select an SEC column and resin — with a full worked example and a trou…
- SUNCAT: Interface Science and Catalysis Guide
A guide to SUNCAT catalysis: atomic-scale catalyst design, Catalysis-Hub surface reaction data, DFT workflows, and operando synchrotron spectroscopy.…
- Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR): Running a Binding Assay and Calculating KD from a Sensorgram
A step-by-step SPR binding assay procedure from ligand immobilization through regeneration, plus a worked calculation deriving ka, kd and KD = kd/ka f…
- Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA): Running a Scan and Interpreting Mass-Loss Steps
A practical guide to running a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) scan and interpreting the resulting curve: crucible and purge-gas selection, heating-r…
- Thin-Layer Chromatography: How to Run a Plate and Calculate Rf
A step-by-step thin-layer chromatography procedure with two fully worked Rf calculations, a solvent-system selection table, and a troubleshooting tabl…
- UniChem (EMBL-EBI): Chemical Identifier Cross-Reference Service
UniChem (EMBL-EBI) cross-references compound identifiers through Standard InChI. How UCIs and the API work, and a checklist for linking records.…
Laboratory Equipment & Instrumentation
- ATR-FTIR vs Transmission FTIR: Penetration Depth, Crystal Choice, and Spectral Distortion
A sampling-mode selection guide for mid-IR: the penetration-depth equation with its variables and assumptions, crystal choice by sample chemistry, and…
- Biosafety Cabinet vs. Fume Hood vs. Laminar Flow Hood: Which Do You Need?Comparison
A biosafety cabinet protects worker, sample, and room. A chemical fume hood protects only the worker. A laminar flow hood protects only the sample. Th…
- Chiral Chromatography: Column Selection and a Screening Strategy That Knows When to Stop
A practical screening strategy for chiral HPLC method development: which stationary-phase family to try first, which mobile-phase mode to pair it with…
- Electrospray Ionization: Source Parameters and How to Tune Them
A source-parameter tuning procedure for electrospray ionization: what each of the six ESI controls physically does, how Waters, Agilent, SCIEX, Thermo…
- Fluorescence Polarization (FP) Assays: Tracer Design, Kd Targeting, and Interference Controls
A practical guide to the three decisions that determine whether a fluorescence polarization assay works: tracer size relative to target, target concen…
- Fluorescence Spectroscopy: How It Works, Instrumentation, and When to Use It
How fluorescence spectroscopy works, the instrumentation behind a spectrofluorometer, how it differs from UV-Vis spectrophotometry and fluorescence mi…
- High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry: How Much Resolving Power and Mass Accuracy You Actually Need
Resolving power and mass accuracy specified by job rather than by datasheet: the resolving power needed to separate named isobaric pairs, how many can…
- ICP-MS Polyatomic Interference Correction: Collision Cell, Reaction Cell, Math Correction, or Resolution
How to identify a polyatomic interference in ICP-MS and choose between collision cell, reaction cell, mathematical correction, and mass resolution --…
- ICP-MS Sample Preparation and Acid Digestion: Choosing Open-Vessel, Microwave, or Fusion by Matrix
Choosing between open-vessel, microwave-assisted, and fusion digestion for ICP-MS sample prep, by sample matrix, with acid selection and the contamina…
- Internal Standards in Quantitative Mass Spectrometry
Selection criteria for stable isotope-labeled vs structural analogue internal standards in LC-MS/MS quantitation, where in the extraction workflow to…
- Multiple Reaction Monitoring: Building and Optimizing MRM Transitions
A working guide to MRM method development on a triple quadrupole: choosing precursors and product ions, optimising collision energy, and budgeting dwe…
- NIST Mass Spectral Library Search: Match Factor, Reverse Match and the Retention-Index Cross-Check
How to interpret match factor, reverse match factor and probability in NIST mass spectral library search, why a high-scoring hit can still be the wron…
- Pipette Tips: Selection Guide by Application
How to choose pipette tips by application: filter/barrier vs. standard, low-retention vs. standard, sterile vs. autoclavable, and rack vs. bulk format…
- SPE Cartridge Selection and Method Optimization: Sorbent Choice and the Wash-Step Trade-Off
A method-development guide to solid phase extraction: choosing a sorbent from analyte pKa and log D, the strong-versus-weak exchanger rule, and how to…
- Types of Laboratory Glassware: Volumetric vs. General-Purpose, Explained
A selection-and-accuracy reference for laboratory glassware: the volumetric vs. general-purpose distinction, TC/TD markings, Class A vs. Class B toler…
- What Is a Mass Spectrometer?
What a mass spectrometer is, how it ionizes and measures molecules by mass-to-charge ratio, and how it differs from a spectrophotometer or a chromatog…
Research Methods & Statistics
- Bioinformatics vs Cheminformatics: Key DifferencesComparison
A side-by-side comparison of bioinformatics and cheminformatics: data types, databases, methods, tools, funders, careers and where the two meet in dru…
- Chemistry vs Chemical Engineering: Key DifferencesComparison
Chemistry studies matter and how it reacts; chemical engineering designs and scales the processes that use it. How their methods, training, funding an…
- Materials Science vs Chemistry: What Is the Difference?Comparison
Chemistry asks what substances are made of and how they transform; materials science asks how the structure of a material, set by its processing, dete…
- Organic Chemistry vs Inorganic Chemistry: What Is the Difference?Comparison
Organic chemistry is organized around carbon-based compounds and their functional groups; inorganic chemistry is organized around the elements, mostly…
- Physical Chemistry vs. Analytical Chemistry: What Is the Difference?Comparison
Physical chemistry applies physics to explain why chemical systems behave as they do; analytical chemistry is organized around measuring what a sample…
- Physics vs Chemistry: What Is the Difference?Comparison
Physics studies the fundamental laws of matter, energy, space and time; chemistry studies how atoms combine and react. Scope, methods, funding, traini…
- SciFinder vs Reaxys: Chemistry Database ComparisonComparison
A detailed comparison of CAS SciFinder and Elsevier Reaxys, evaluating literature coverage, reaction planning, substance registry, and synthetic workf…
- What Is Analytical Chemistry? Methods, Validation, and Career Paths
Analytical chemistry is the branch of chemistry concerned with identifying what a sample contains and measuring how much. This guide covers its method…
- What Is Biochemistry? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
What biochemistry studies, its major subfields, who funds the research (NIH, NSF), core lab methods, and typical career and PhD training paths.…
- What Is Cheminformatics? Methods, Databases, and Career Paths
Cheminformatics applies computing and information science to chemical problems. This guide covers molecular representations (SMILES, InChI), open data…
- What Is Chemistry? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
What chemistry studies, its major branches, who funds the research (NSF, DOE, NIH), core lab methods, and typical career and PhD training paths.…
- What Is Inorganic Chemistry? Subfields, Funding, and Training Paths
A guide to inorganic chemistry: what it studies, its major subfields, the funders and societies behind the research, common lab methods, and how resea…
- What Is Organic Chemistry? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
A complete guide to organic chemistry: what it studies, major subfields, the federal and private funders behind the research, common lab methods, and…
- What Is Physical Chemistry? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
A guide to physical chemistry: thermodynamics, kinetics, quantum chemistry, spectroscopy and computational methods, with funders, journals, societies…
- What Is Polymer Science? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
Polymer science studies the synthesis, structure and properties of macromolecules. Research areas, methods, history, funding, societies and career pat…
Laboratory Compliance & Quality
- Calibration Certificates and Metrological Traceability: What "NIST-Traceable" Actually Means
What a compliant calibration certificate must contain, what metrological traceability (VIM) actually requires, why "NIST-traceable" is widely misused,…
- Eyewash Station and Safety Shower Requirements: ANSI Z358.1 and OSHA
ANSI/ISEA Z358.1 and OSHA 1910.151(c) requirements for eyewash stations and safety showers: 10-second/55-foot travel distance, 15-minute flush, tepid…
- GHS Classification of Chemicals: How Hazard Classes and Categories Get Assigned to a Mixture
A worked GHS classification of a mixture under 29 CFR 1910.1200 Appendices A and B: which ingredients count, the acute toxicity additivity formula, sk…
- ICH Q2(R2) Analytical Procedure Validation: Which Tests Apply, What Changed from Q2(R1), and How It Pairs with Q14
ICH Q2(R2) and ICH Q14 were adopted at Step 4 together on 1 November 2023. This guide sets out the Q2(R2) Table 1 test-selection matrix by measured qu…
- ISO/IEC 17025: What It Actually Accredits and How It Differs from ISO 9001
ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredits a laboratory’s technical competence for a defined scope of tests or calibrations — it does not certify the organization a…
- Lab Waste Disposal: RCRA Streams, Generator Status, and Disposal Routes
A research lab generates several legally distinct waste streams — RCRA hazardous chemicals, medical/biohazardous waste, sharps, radiological waste, an…
- Laboratory Design for Compliance and Safety
A practical guide to the compliance and safety dimension of laboratory design: containment zoning, ventilation and pressure relationships, fume hood a…
- OSHA-Reportable Laboratory Injuries: The 8-Hour and 24-Hour Clocks, and What Recordable Means Instead
Reporting a laboratory injury to OSHA and recording it on the 300 Log are two different duties with two different triggers. This guide separates 29 CF…
- Permissible Exposure Limits vs TLVs and RELs: Which Number Governs a Laboratory Chemical
The OSHA PEL is the only enforceable airborne limit, and for most laboratory chemicals it is the 1971 value derived from the 1968 ACGIH TLVs. This pag…
- Shock-Sensitive Chemicals in the Laboratory: Identification and the Do-Not-Touch Boundary
Dried picric acid, concentrated peroxide-forming solvents, and metal azides formed in plumbing are the three real sources of shock-sensitive chemical…
- Type I, II and III Laboratory Water: Grades, Standards and Uses Compared
ASTM D1193, ISO 3696 and CLSI GP40 define laboratory water grades (Type I/II/III, Grade 1/2/3, CLRW) with overlapping but non-identical resistivity, T…
- Written Hazard Communication Program for a Laboratory: Who Actually Owes One, and How It Nests Inside the Chemical Hygiene Plan
A laboratory under 29 CFR 1910.1450 owes a Chemical Hygiene Plan, not a written hazard communication program — but the stockroom, machine shop and pil…
Scholarly Publishing
- CAS Common Chemistry: Platform Guide
A platform guide to CAS Common Chemistry: searching ~500,000 substances, looking up CAS Registry Numbers, exporting structures, and using the REST API…
- CAS Number: Chemical Registry Identifier Guide
Learn what a CAS number is, how the CAS Registry assigns unique chemical identifiers, checksum calculation, MSDS lookup, and search methods.…
- checkCIF: Crystallography Validation Guide
A practical guide to checkCIF validation for crystallographic files, covering IUCr alert levels, validation response forms, and journal submission wor…
- ChemSpider
Learn how to use ChemSpider to search over 120 million chemical structures, run Ketcher structure searches, query small molecules, and access the RSC…
- ChemSusChem: Journal Scope, Metrics & APC
A researcher guide to ChemSusChem: scope, impact metrics, author submission requirements, and hybrid open-access options for sustainable chemistry.…
- IUPAC Gold Book: Platform & Terminology Guide
A platform and research guide to the IUPAC Gold Book: accessing >7,000 chemical terminology definitions, citing term-level DOIs, and using the REST AP…
- Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Chemical Safety Guide
A definitive reference guide to Prudent Practices in the Laboratory, covering chemical hazard assessment, OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1450 alignment, and lab saf…
- The Merck Index: Chemical Encyclopedia Guide
Explore The Merck Index chemical encyclopedia, RSC Online database features, search workflows, edition history, and standard ACS citation formats.…
- What Is ChemRxiv? The Chemistry Preprint Server Explained
ChemRxiv is chemistry’s dedicated preprint server: free to post, DOI-assigning, screened but not peer-reviewed, and governed jointly by ACS, RSC, GDCh…
Research Data Management
- Crystallography Open Database (COD): Open-Access Crystal Structure Repository
The Crystallography Open Database (COD) is a free, open-access repository of experimentally determined crystal structures in CIF format, with 520,000+…
- Electronic Lab Notebooks for Chemistry: Structures, Reactions, and CAS Registry Linking
What changes when an electronic lab notebook has to be chemistry-aware: structure drawing and editing, reaction-centric data capture, CAS Registry Num…
- Protein Data Bank (PDB): Archiving and Reusing Macromolecular Structure Data
How the Protein Data Bank archives experimentally determined 3D macromolecular structures, wwPDB governance, deposition mandates, formats, and reuse i…
- PubChem: NIH/NLM's Chemistry Compound and Bioassay Data Repository
PubChem is NCBI/NLM/NIH's free repository of chemical structures, substances, and bioassay data. What it covers, how it's organized, and how research…
Research Tools & Software
- ORCA Quantum Chemistry: Install and Run Your First Calculation
Install ORCA, run a first Hartree-Fock input, read the energy line and fix PATH and PAL errors, from the ORCA 6.1.1 manual.…
- What Is a LIMS? Laboratory Information Management System Explained
A Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) tracks lab samples, workflows, and results with a full audit trail. This guide explains what a LIMS…
Scholarly Writing
- ACS Paragon Plus
Walk through the ACS Paragon Plus submission workflow, from file designation and author metadata to proof validation, peer review tracking, and guidel…
- Chemistry Manuscript Writing Conventions: ACS Style, Supporting Information, and Journal-Specific Formatting
How chemistry manuscripts differ from generic IMRaD: ACS Style Guide nomenclature conventions, the Experimental Section, Supporting Information struct…
Clinical Research Administration
- Cheng-Prusoff Equation: Converting IC50 to Ki
The Cheng-Prusoff equation converts an assay-dependent IC50 into an assay-independent Ki. Covers the derivation logic, a worked numeric example, and t…
Grants Management & Research Funding
- ACS Fall Meeting: Chemistry Conference Guide
A practical guide to the ACS Fall Meeting, detailing MAPS abstract submission rules, division programming, travel grant opportunities, and meeting str…
Other guides
- Mass Spectrometer Tuning and Mass Calibration: A Scheduled QC Procedure
Mass calibration and tune verification treated as a scheduled QC procedure rather than a one-off fix: what tuning and calibration each actually check,…
