literature review in chemistry

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What is a Literature Review?

Key questions for a literature review, examples of literature reviews, useful links, evidence matrix for literature reviews.

• Annotated Bibliographies

The Scholarly Conversation

A literature review provides an overview of previous research on a topic that critically evaluates, classifies, and compares what has already been published on a particular topic. It allows the author to synthesize and place into context the research and scholarly literature relevant to the topic. It helps map the different approaches to a given question and reveals patterns. It forms the foundation for the author’s subsequent research and justifies the significance of the new investigation.

A literature review can be a short introductory section of a research article or a report or policy paper that focuses on recent research. Or, in the case of dissertations, theses, and review articles, it can be an extensive review of all relevant research.

• The format is usually a bibliographic essay; sources are briefly cited within the body of the essay, with full bibliographic citations at the end.
• The introduction should define the topic and set the context for the literature review. It will include the author's perspective or point of view on the topic, how they have defined the scope of the topic (including what's not included), and how the review will be organized. It can point out overall trends, conflicts in methodology or conclusions, and gaps in the research.
• In the body of the review, the author should organize the research into major topics and subtopics. These groupings may be by subject, (e.g., globalization of clothing manufacturing), type of research (e.g., case studies), methodology (e.g., qualitative), genre, chronology, or other common characteristics. Within these groups, the author can then discuss the merits of each article and analyze and compare the importance of each article to similar ones.
• The conclusion will summarize the main findings, make clear how this review of the literature supports (or not) the research to follow, and may point the direction for further research.
• The list of references will include full citations for all of the items mentioned in the literature review.

A literature review should try to answer questions such as

• Who are the key researchers on this topic?
• What has been the focus of the research efforts so far and what is the current status?
• How have certain studies built on prior studies? Where are the connections? Are there new interpretations of the research?
• Have there been any controversies or debate about the research? Is there consensus? Are there any contradictions?
• Which areas have been identified as needing further research? Have any pathways been suggested?
• How will your topic uniquely contribute to this body of knowledge?
• Which methodologies have researchers used and which appear to be the most productive?
• What sources of information or data were identified that might be useful to you?
• How does your particular topic fit into the larger context of what has already been done?
• How has the research that has already been done help frame your current investigation ?

Example of a literature review at the beginning of an article: Forbes, C. C., Blanchard, C. M., Mummery, W. K., & Courneya, K. S. (2015, March). Prevalence and correlates of strength exercise among breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer survivors . Oncology Nursing Forum, 42(2), 118+. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com.sonoma.idm.oclc.org/ps/i.do?p=HRCA&sw=w&u=sonomacsu&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7CA422059606&asid=27e45873fddc413ac1bebbc129f7649c Example of a comprehensive review of the literature: Wilson, J. L. (2016). An exploration of bullying behaviours in nursing: a review of the literature.   British Journal Of Nursing ,  25 (6), 303-306. For additional examples, see:

Galvan, J., Galvan, M., & ProQuest. (2017). Writing literature reviews: A guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences (Seventh ed.). [Electronic book]

Pan, M., & Lopez, M. (2008). Preparing literature reviews: Qualitative and quantitative approaches (3rd ed.). Glendale, CA: Pyrczak Pub. [ Q180.55.E9 P36 2008]

• Write a Literature Review (UCSC)
• Literature Reviews (Purdue)
• Literature Reviews: overview (UNC)
• Review of Literature (UW-Madison)

The  Evidence Matrix  can help you  organize your research  before writing your lit review.  Use it to  identify patterns  and commonalities in the articles you have found--similar methodologies ?  common  theoretical frameworks ? It helps you make sure that all your major concepts covered. It also helps you see how your research fits into the context  of the overall topic.

• Evidence Matrix Special thanks to Dr. Cindy Stearns, SSU Sociology Dept, for permission to use this Matrix as an example.
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• Last Updated: Jan 8, 2024 2:58 PM
• URL: https://libguides.sonoma.edu/chemistry

• FLITE Library
• Course Guides

CHEM 451 (Rivera) - Introduction to Physical Chemistry

• Creating a Literature Review
• Welcome to FLITE

Getting Started

Main sections, completing the review, some useful library guides.

• Finding Scholarly Content

A scientific literature review is a critical account of what has been published on a topic by accredited researchers. Literature reviews contribute to the communication and advancement of scientific knowledge. They help us understand how knowledge in a particular field is changing and developing over time, they provide a good introduction ot the major work in a field, and they may uncover gaps in research, conflicting results, and under-examined areas.

You will need to pick a topic that will fit this assignment. Initial research can help you narrow down or focus your topic. General resources might include books, library encyclopedias, overview articles, industry surveys, documentary video, etc. There are movements among both librarians and the general scientific community to create and edit articles in Wikipedia to improve reliability.

Make sure your topic and list of articles to review matches the requirements of your assignment.

Search the literature and identify sources to include in the literature review. Some things to consider about each article are:

Who are the authors? Who is the publisher? Who funded the research? What is the stated purpose of the article?

What evidence is included? Is contradictory evidence presented fairly? Is the writing impartial?

Is the article current? 

Do I think that the article's conclusions are reasonable?

Your review should include:

Abstract -- provide a summary of your review; often there will be a word limit to ensure that the abstract is concise.

Introductory Paragraph -- include core scientific facts, why is this important, what is the aim of the review, what topics will be covered. It makes sense to write the introduction after you've written the main body of the paper.

Body of the Paper -- divided into sections with one key point per paragraph. Each paragraph will include the topic sentence, supporting sentences, concluding sentence. The structure of the sections will depend on your topic.

Concluding Paragraph -- point back to the Introduction, highlight major research, indicate gaps and inconsistencies, and express your own point of view. Provide closure.

Reference List

Evaluate your own work. Did you use representative sources? Does your critical analysis contribute to understanding of the topic?

Example of a review:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10956-016-9619-3

• Literature Reviews Detailed discussion from The Writing Center at the University of North Carolina
• Writing a Literature Review Good advice from Wichita State University
• Scientific Literature Review Very Detailed Discussion of Literature Reviews from Dublin City University
• Writing a Literature Review Clear and basic instructions with an example and a video, from the University of Arizona (formerly Ashford University) Writing Center.
• Synthesis Matrix (example) One suggestion for how to organize your information
• ACS Style Guide
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• Next: Finding Scholarly Content >>
• Last Updated: Apr 25, 2024 9:19 AM
• URL: https://ferris.libguides.com/Chem451

Ferris Library for Information, Technology, and Education

Journals, books & databases

• Our journals

Chem Soc Rev

The journal for high impact reviews from across the chemical sciences

You can find details about how to access information remotely in this step-by-step guide . The guide will also help if for any reason you have difficulty accessing the content you want.

What would you like to know about this journal?

Chem Soc Rev  is a Transformative Journal, and Plan S compliant

Impact factor: 40.4*

Time to first decision (all decisions): 11.0 days**

Time to first decision (peer reviewed only): 24.0 days***

Chair: Jennifer Love

Indexed in MEDLINE and Science Citation Index

Open access publishing options available

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Meet the team

Chem Soc Rev  ( Chemical Society Reviews ) is the Royal Society of Chemistry's leading reviews journal. We publish high-impact, authoritative and reader-friendly review articles covering important topics at the forefront of the chemical sciences.

We welcome and encourage proposals for reviews from members of the research community:

• To write a review, please download a proposal form
• To propose a tutorial, please download a tutorial proposal form
• If you are interested in submitting a Viewpoint, please contact us and we will provide further guidance.

Journal scope

Chem Soc Rev publishes review articles covering important topics at the forefront of the chemical sciences. Reviews should be of the very highest quality and international impact. We particularly encourage international and multidisciplinary collaborations among our authors.

Our scope covers the breadth of the chemical sciences, including interdisciplinary topics where the article has a basis in chemistry. Topics include:

• Analytical chemistry
• Biomaterials chemistry
• Bioorganic/medicinal chemistry
• Chemical Biology
• Coordination Chemistry
• Crystal Engineering
• Sustainable chemistry
• Green chemistry
• Inorganic chemistry
• Inorganic materials
• Main group chemistry
• Nanoscience
• Organic chemistry
• Organic materials
• Organometallics
• Physical chemistry
• Supramolecular chemistry
• Synthetic methodology
• Theoretical and computational chemistry

ChemSocRev Pioneering Investigator Lectureship

This award recognises mid-career scientists who have firmly established themselves in their independent careers and continuously publish innovative and pioneering work.

Nominations are now closed. We expect to open nominations for the 2024 lectureship in the Autumn

Read about eligibility, how to nominate, and see all award winners

Find out who is on the editorial and advisory boards for the Chem Soc Rev  journal.

Jennifer Love , University of Calgary, Canada

Associate editors

Louise Berben , University of California Davis, USA

Vy Dong , University of California, Irvine

Rebecca Goss , University of St Andrews, UK

Zhong-Qun Tian , Xiamen University, China

Xian-He Bu , Nankai University, China

Editorial board members

Giulia Grancini, University of Pavia, Italy

Osamu Ishitani , Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan

Tatjana Parac-Vogt , KU Leuven, Belgium

Raghavan B. Sunoj , Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India

Ryu Abe, Kyoto University

Dave Adams, University of Glasgow

David Amabilino, Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona

Ruchi Anand, IIT Bombay

Ivan Aprahamian, Dartmouth College

Parisa A. Ariya, McGill University

Robert Baker, Trinity College Dublin

Tom Baker, University of Ottawa

Thomas Bennett, University of Cambridge

Gonçalo Bernardes, University of Cambridge

Barry Blight,  University of New Brunswick

Anne-Marie Caminade, University of Toulouse

Araceli Campaña, University of Granada

Rui Cao, Shaanxi Normal University

Hong Chen, Soochow University

Yong Cui, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Abhishek Dey, IACS

Huw Davies, Emory University

Wim Dehaen, Catholic University of Leuven

William Dichtel, Northwestern University

Yves Dufrêne, Université catholique de Louvain

Antonio Echavarren, Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia

Elena Fernández, Universitat Rovira i Virgili

Miriam Freedman, Pennsylvania State University, USA

Philip A Gale, The University of Sydney, Australia

Debashree Ghosh, IACS

Duncan Graham, University of Strathclyde

Stefan Grimme, Universität Bonn

Frances Houle,  Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Ashlee Howarth, Concordia University

Feihe Huang, Zhejiang University

Masako Kato, Kwansei Gakuin University

Jong Seung Kim, Korea University

Rafal Klajn, Weizmann Institute of Science

Daniele Leonori, RWTH Aachen University

Chao-Jun Li, McGill University

Jinghong Li, Tsinghua University

Yan Li, Peking University

Zhuang Liu,  Soochow University

Norberto Peporine Lopes, CEMMO

Bettina Lotsch, Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research

Connie Lu, University of Minnesota

Cara Lubner, NREL

Rafael Luque,  King Saud University

Uday Maitra, Indian Institute of Science

Nazario Martín, Complutense University of Madrid

Feliu Maseras, Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia

Fiona Meldrum, University of Leeds

Gugu Mhlongo, CSIR

Amanda Morris, Virginia Tech

Simona Mura, Institut Galien Paris-Saclay

Brenno Neto,  University of Brasilia

Tebello Nyokong, Rhodes University

Martin Oestreich, Technische Universität Berlin

Elisa Orth, Federal University of Paraná

Mario Pagliaro, National Research Council (NRC)

Atul Parikh, University of California Davis

Kanyi Pu, Nanyang Technological University

Eric Rivard, University of Alberta

Gregory Robinson, University of Georgia

Peter Roesky, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology

Ashley Ross, University of Cincinnati

Vincent Rotello, University of Massachusetts

Joanna Sadler, University of Edinburgh

Paolo Samori, University of Strasbourg

D.D. Sarma,  Indian Institute of Science

Clément Sanchez, Pierre and Marie Curie University

Hélder A. Santos, University of Helsinki

Jennifer Schaefer, Notre Dame

Wendy Shaw, PNNL

Injae Shin, Yonsei University

David Spring, University of Cambridge

Andrew Steckl, University of Cincinnati

Samuel Stupp, Northwestern University

Jin Suntivich,  Cornell University

Kana Sureshan, IISER Thiruvananthapuram

Qunwei Tang, Shandong University of Science and Technology

Micheal Tam, University of Waterloo

Andrea Trabocchi, University of Florence

James Tucker, University of Birmingham

Leyong Wang, Nanjing University

Peng Wang, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry

Bert Weckhuysen, Utrecht University

Helma Wennemers, ETH Zurich

Stephen Withers, University of British Columbia

Yujie Xiong, University of Science and Technology of China

Makoto Yamashita, Nagoya University 

Juyoung Yoon, Ewha Womans University

Shuli You, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Guihua Yu, University of Texas at Austin

Claudio Zannoni, University of Bologna

Haoli Zhang, Lanzhou University

Qiang Zhang, Tsinghua University

Yong Zhang, City University of Hong Kong

Yiping Zhao, University of Georgia

Hongli Zhu, Northeastern University

Richard Kelly , Executive Editor, 0000-0003-2380-9315

Jon Ferrier, Deputy Editor

Danny Andrews , Development Editor

Ershad Abubacker , Development Editor

Jade Holliday , Editorial Assistant

Helen Saxton , Editorial Production Manager 0000-0002-1560-7396

Becky Webb , Senior Publishing Editor

Kirstine Anderson, Publishing Editor

Matthew Bown, Publishing Editor

Laura Cooper , Publishing Editor

Hannah Fielding , Publishing Editor

Anoushka Handa, Publishing Editor

Claire Harding, Publishing Editor

Alan Holder , Publishing Editor, ORCID 0000-0001-5228-877X

Charlie Palmer , Publishing Editor

Rosie Rothwell, Publishing Editor

Donna Smith , Publishing Editor, ORCID 0000-0002-1337-2327

Laura Smith , Publishing Editor, ORCID 0000-0002-2976-8529

Natalie Ford , Publishing Assistant

Jeanne Andres, Publisher 

Article types

Chem Soc Rev  publishes:

• Tutorial reviews

All articles should consist of original text and interpretation. If other authors’ material is used - either text or graphics - permission must be sought by the author from the publisher of the original source and must be made clear in the manuscript. 

Reviews and Tutorial Reviews should focus on key developments in a field, with the author providing their own analysis and insight throughout on developments, trends and future directions. Articles which simply summarise research in the topic with minimal or no analysis or insight from the author are not suitable for publication in Chem Soc Rev . To achieve this goal we respectfully ask authors of Reviews and Tutorial Reviews to use new graphics where possible (by redrawing schemes for example) and to aim for no more than 20% of graphics in their article to be reused from previously published work. We understand that in some cases it is necessary to include more previously published graphics (for example, where graphs or microscope images are shown). In these cases we ask authors to provide a very brief justification on submission.

Authors may supply videos, PowerPoint slides, soundbites, pictures and other additional material as electronic supplementary information (ESI) to complement and enhance their articles. Please contact the editorial office for more details.

Guidance on specific article types is below.

Tutorial Reviews

Tutorial Reviews are concise, accessible and authoritative overviews of important contemporary topics in the chemical sciences. They should appeal to advanced undergraduates, the general research chemist who is new to the field, as well as the expert. They provide a solid introduction to the development of a subject, the latest breakthrough results and their implications for the wider scientific community. Tutorial Reviews should not contain unpublished research.

Tutorial reviews must fulfil the following criteria.

Appeal to advanced undergraduate students and beyond. Tutorial reviews are often used in advanced undergraduate and Master’s studies.

Authoritative

Provide an essential introduction to the field which will lay the foundation of knowledge in the area, followed by the most important recent advances. Authors should include throughout the article their own insights into the development of the field and its future potential.

In particular highlight areas where there has been a significant recent advance.

There is no strict reference limit; however please include only the most important historical and recent research, referencing the major contributions (with the “and references cited therein” addition where appropriate). Tutorial Reviews are typically up to 15 journal pages in length.

Jargon-free

Specialist terms and symbols should be defined and fundamental ideas simply explained.   

Tutorial reviews should include a 'key learning points' box, containing up to five key learning points that a reader should expect to gain from reading the review. These should be provided on submission, either at the beginning of the review or as a separate document.

Reviews provide an authoritative and in-depth understanding of important topics in the chemical sciences. They give a very high-quality state-of-the-art account of the subject matter and a balanced assessment of the current primary literature. The implications of recent developments for the wider scientific community are emphasised and authors should aim to stimulate progress in the field.  Chem Soc Rev  Reviews should not contain original, unpublished research.

Reviews must fulfil the following criteria.

Of general interest and enticing to the journal’s wide, community-spanning readership.

A timely account is needed which genuinely adds to the existing literature.

Carefully referenced

References should be selected to give a balanced view of the field.

Specialist terms and symbols should be defined and fundamental ideas simply explained.     

Viewpoints are short, opinion-based articles where the author gives their view on a challenge, issue or key development in an important area of chemistry research.

A Viewpoint is not intended to be a mini-review. The focus should be on the opinion of the author; however, the article should be scholarly and the arguments made should be supported by appropriate references.

A typical Viewpoint:

• is up to four journal pages in length
• contains up to three display item

If you are interested in submitting a Viewpoint, please contact [email protected] and we will be able to provide further guidance.

Journal guidelines

For accepted proposals or invited submissions, authors are encouraged to submit their full manuscript on the Royal Society of Chemistry article template, which is available to download here . 

Open access publishing options

Chem Soc Rev  is a hybrid (transformative) journal and gives authors the choice of publishing their research either via the traditional subscription-based model or instead by choosing our gold open access option.  Find out more about our Transformative Journals. which are Plan S compliant .

Gold open access

For authors who want to publish their article gold open access , Chem Soc Rev  charges an article processing charge (APC) of £2,750 (+ any applicable tax). Our APC is all-inclusive and makes your article freely available online immediately, permanently, and includes your choice of Creative Commons licence (CC BY or CC BY-NC) at no extra cost. It is not a submission charge, so you only pay if your article is accepted for publication.

Learn more about publishing open access .

Read & Publish

If your institution has a Read & Publish agreement in place with the Royal Society of Chemistry, APCs for gold open access publishing in Chem Soc Rev  may already be covered.

Use our journal finder to check if your institution has an open access agreement with us.

Please use your official institutional email address to submit your manuscript and check you are assigned as the corresponding author; this helps us to identify if you are eligible for Read & Publish or other APC discounts.

Traditional subscription model

Authors can also publish in Chem Soc Rev via the traditional subscription model without needing to pay an APC. Articles published via this route are available to institutions and individuals who subscribe to the journal. Our standard licence allows you to make the accepted manuscript of your article freely available after a 12-month embargo period. This is known as the green route to open access.

Learn more about green open access .

Readership information

Chem Soc Rev  has a truly international readership, from emerging investigators to eminent scientists working in across all areas of the chemical sciences.

Subscription information

Chemical Society Reviews is part of collections RSC Gold and General Chemistry.

Online only 2024 : ISSN 1460-4744, £1,359 / $2,156

*2023 Journal Citation Reports (Clarivate Analytics, 2024)

**The median time from submission to first decision including manuscripts rejected without peer review from the previous calendar year

***The median time from submission to first decision for peer-reviewed manuscripts from the previous calendar year

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1.1 Chemical Information Three Ways: The Big Picture Of Big Information

1.2 approaching the literature: principles to bear in mind when you are searching for chemical information, 1.2.1 scholarly literature is evaluated to uphold scientific integrity and vitality, 1.2.2 data provenance and evaluation is a critical part of the research process, 1.2.3 scientific literature is considered intellectual property, 1.2.4 scholarly literature is structured to facilitate research, 1.2.5 the literature is a web of potential, 1.2.6 libraries and other information providers offer disambiguation, 1.3 getting started with the chemical literature, 1.3.1 your literature research is only as good as your input and process, 1.3.2 how to use the literature to be a more efficient chemist, chapter 1: introduction to the chemical literature.

• Published: 22 Oct 2013
• Special Collection: 2014 ebook collection , RSC eTextbook Collection Product Type: Textbooks
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L. McEwen, in Chemical Information for Chemists: A Primer, ed. J. Currano and D. Roth, The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2013, pp. 1-27.

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To begin, we will consider the ways in which literature is involved in the research process, how scientists are involved in the production and consumption of this literature, and the role of information providers and the library. The scholarly communication cycle is at the core of the scientific endeavor for both research and teaching purposes and is standard practice across the disciplines. Published literature is the lasting product of scientific research. It captures and documents the ideas, methods, results, implications and applications of projects and makes this information available to the broader research community and society to further research developments, grants, products, marketing, competitive advantage, etc .

I recently welcomed a new group of chemistry graduate students with an orientation to the library at Cornell University. We started with a discussion of the role of literature in research, focused on the scope of specific library resources and services available, and highlighted a few key things the students could do right away to get started with their research. The idea was to funnel the vast world of chemistry-related literature into something bite-sized and immediately useful while not losing sight of how much is possible and how important robust literature research is to chemistry. We hope this book will accomplish something similar: provide a highly useful volume for a broad range of information-related needs across the chemistry research process. In this introduction, we hope to cover both the big picture of how information fits into the chemical enterprise and a few useful things to keep in mind when delving into the literature.

To begin, we will consider the ways in which literature is involved in the research process, how scientists are involved in the production and consumption of this literature, and the role of information providers and the library. The scholarly communication cycle is at the core of the scientific endeavor for both research and teaching purposes and is standard practice across the disciplines. Published literature is the lasting product of scientific research. It captures and documents the ideas, methods, results, implications and applications of projects and makes this information available to the broader research community and society to further research developments, grants, products, marketing, competitive advantage, etc. It is important for researchers to determine exactly when in their research process to disseminate their findings to the community and which of the many available avenues of communication is most appropriate. These decisions are influenced by place of work (academic, government, industry), job level, and practices in various chemistry sub-disciplines. The resulting published literature in chemistry is as varied and complex as the science it represents, and includes articles, patents, technical reports, conference proceedings, book chapters, and data sets.

Other complexities of publishing research lie in impact and prestige, discoverability and re-use, and availability and persistence. Tying one's name to research, being published and noted, is important to the success of many scientists. As purveyors of the literature publication process, publishers are also interested in procuring the most critical observations and ideas with the best potential. In addition to channeling the discovery of this research, they have high stakes in assuring the quality of research they publish and upholding the standards of scientific integrity. Peer-review is a long established and well-respected feature of scientific publication across most publishers. Clustering articles by disciplinary interest and novel potential further impacts discovery of worthy research. Well-respected publishers add value to the publication process through careful management of these and other editorial processes.

In addition to furthering knowledge itself, quality scientific research can also lead to new industrial applications and product development, improvements in scientific literacy and education, and informed public policy and national security. The field of chemistry is relatively unique, as it is both an academic discipline and an industry active in research and development. The extensive industrial sector is a heavy consumer of the published research literature, as well as a producer of its own research, primarily expressed in the form of patents. Commercial processes place special demands on presentation, authority, and accessibility of chemical information, which in turn significantly impacts the focus of government research and the experience of the academic chemistry research environment. In addition to publication of primary research, government contribution to the chemical information landscape includes high-quality data sets, standards for processes and safety, and education guidelines. Scientific societies such as the American Chemical Society in the US or the Royal Society of Chemistry in the UK play major roles in advocating and focusing on infrastructure for producing, re-using and building on quality scientific information.

The availability and persistence of published literature has a profound impact on the research process. Libraries and other information providers are concerned with the practical issues around discoverability and utility of published information. A variety of commercial and non-profit entities offer specialized tools to help researchers sift through the vast primary chemistry literature of journals, patents, registered compounds, and data sets. Abstracts are increasingly available online at no cost, publishers provide electronic alerts and news feeds, and conferences and social networks further highlight the availability of new research publications. In chemistry fields, most published content requires payment for access, reflecting both the expense to ensure quality and the potential for high-value re-use. With the advent of electronic information, pricing options have shifted from outright sale of copies to licensed access, which in turn has implications for ownership and responsibility of long-term archiving. Libraries remain major access points to and stewards of the chemistry literature; they maintain a high awareness of quality, and advise and collaborate with service providers.

In addition to providing researchers with access points to scientific information, libraries have historically taken on the task of preserving the scholarly literature to enable future use. It is easy to overlook the importance of older publications, but they constitute a significant portion of the accumulated scientific knowledge, and are responsible for supporting scientific development over the past several hundred years. In chemistry, where structural and reaction principles do not change drastically over time, older publications are very often still vital to current progress in a field, and in interdisciplinary research areas, past work is often re-considered from different perspectives. Research libraries worldwide store vast collections of journals in hard copy, often in state-of-the-art, climate-controlled, high-density storage facilities with sophisticated inventory control for easy retrieval. Publishers are also making digital back-files of older articles available for purchase or licensing, and libraries and publishers are working together to pursue preservation solutions, including the development of third-party archiving services, that will ensure access to the content in any future, foreseen or otherwise.

It is as important to develop good literature practices for your work as it is to improve your experimental and technical research skills. Good literature practices in scientific research require regular time spent reading or searching for journal articles and other relevant literature reviews.  One should cultivate this practice to build competence in a new area, keep abreast of activity in areas of interest, become aware of exciting new possibilities and strong research groups, and scope out advantageous opportunities for collaboration and publication. Be aware of the scope of literature and information sources available to support both the theoretical and experimental developments of your research endeavors. The remaining chapters of this volume will introduce and guide you through a broad array of the most critical information resources and searching methods in chemistry research. It is well worth a systematic read to be aware of the landscape, and frequent referral for more focused guidance as you practice your research.

Before proceeding farther into the landscape, there are a few general background areas worth delving into more deeply to better understand the literature resources you will use: basic information evaluation concepts; copyright and other intellectual property matters; how the published literature is structured; connectivity potential in the digital age; how libraries and other information providers can support your research; and the scientific input and approach you bring to your search process.

A basic distinction of scholarly literature is that it has been evaluated to some extent before publication. It is important to the quality of one's own research process to ascertain up front the quality of related research in a discipline. The researcher must ultimately make the final determination if a work is worth looking at, starting with an assessment of how it has already been evaluated by the larger scientific community.

The most common type of primary publication of scientific information for academics is the journal article, and the first entity that decides what primary research is published in journals is usually the journal's editor-in-chief. Editors of scientific journals look for research that is original, scientifically important, and that fits the journal's scope in subject matter and treatment. Further review of manuscripts by published peers in the same research area serves to “flag what's important, set aside what's pedestrian, and abjure what's fraudulent”. 1   A published article that has undergone a robust peer review and editorial process should contain data that tell a story and results that move the state of knowledge forward. The introduction of the article should set the stage for the story of the data analysis, and the novelty and intellectual interpretation of the research should be hammered home in the conclusion, giving a sense of the quality of thinking of the author.

Peer review is not a comprehensive evaluation system; reviewers do not generally repeat the experiments described, although review of supporting data is required in some characterization journals. The actual review process is not fail-safe and varies widely across publishers, which can significantly impact the reputation of a journal. The primary literature may be beset with a myriad of quality issues, including premature publication, lack of novelty, lack of focus or unclear explanation, inadequate review of the relevant literature, inadequate characterization of compounds created or altered in the research, missing or poorly designed experimental controls, failure to address alternate explanations, or unjustifiably strong statements.

Pre-reviewed research content is increasingly available online; conference proceedings, pre-print servers, research manuscript repositories associated with funding agencies, and community-supported, openly accessible and openly reviewed journals are a few of the examples. In the chemical disciplines, first disclosure and peer review of research findings carry significant weight in consideration of provenance, quality, and intellectual rights and are important considerations for the reputation and authority of the researchers themselves and particularly critical for commercial vitality in the industrial sector. Initial publication in an open or pre-peer-reviewed public venue may preclude later publication in journals with higher reputations or patenting to claim exploitable rights.

Even peer-reviewed journals vary widely in their reputation for quality and visibility of the research they publish, which in turn reflects on the reputation of the authors. One indicator of journal performance in contribution to scientific research is the number of citations by other research to the articles published in a particular journal. This principle underlies the Thomson Reuters Journal Impact Factor, which is often used by a broad range of literature users such as publishers trying to attract authors, institutions considering tenure for research faculty, researchers identifying top journals to monitor, and libraries attempting to prioritize access and preservation of journal content. Discovery service providers also consider the provenance of published literature and data, but tend to include a fairly broad approach to sources to give the chemical researcher the fullest information of the activity potential in their research area. Promising new journals may not be indexed until they have proven their potential, maybe through a high Journal Impact Factor, which takes two years to calculate.

Many research areas in chemistry generate and analyze significant volumes of data. Data associated with chemical research can appear directly in articles, in supplementary files referenced by articles, as part of compiled data sets, and in repositories of specialized types of chemical information. The provenance and quality of compound characterization and other published data are particularly important to chemistry research. Results and interpretation are only as good as the data on which they are based, and their potential for meaningful contribution to scientific knowledge depends on their correlation to other evidence or revelation of abnormal observations. As you work with both your own data and those you are re-using from other sources, it is critical to ascertain that they actually represent what they are purporting to and are reliable, based on the quality of the measurement process. The opportunity to apply promising methodologies on large production scales in the commercial sector hinges on adherence to standards and regulations of practice. You can imagine areas of chemistry, such as the development of drug formulations and construction materials, where lack of attention to safety, consistency, and reliability can not only compromise the outcome of the experiment but could potentially endanger vast numbers of people.

Quality data start with robust data collection practices, including documentation, using multiple sources of measurement, calibration of equipment, and using controls and/or standard reference data. It is most important for users of data to know how it was collected to determine if it is relevant, if it actually measures what was intended, and if its collection was executed in a sufficiently accurate and precise manner for re-use in the new context. Good documentation should include careful notation of all the parameters in which the data were measured, including equipment, conditions, methodology, characterized standards, and experimental context. Multiple sources of a measurement re-enforce the quality of the measurement technique and specific execution, and normalize inherent variability within and across chemical systems. Calibration to well-characterized standards also maximizes the technical quality of a measurement. The use of controls within an experiment or comparison of results to standard reference data establishes the value of the measurement that is distinct to a sample and of interest for further analysis. For example, the use of standard reference data to identify values related to specific structural characteristics of compounds is relevant to spectra searching, for example.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) concerns itself with supporting robust chemical and physical data evaluation and addresses standards across four stages: data collection, basic evaluation, relational analysis, and modeling. 2   How data is collected, documented and stored can impact later accessibility to that data. Basic evaluation questions generally focus on the reproducibility of the data using the same collection methods. Relational analysis is concerned with consistency of the data at hand with other data that describe the material, such as related properties or independent reports of a particular property. Modeling calculations can indicate the predictability of the data as an indicator for this property under the conditions at hand. In practice, processes for assessing and assuring quality of data are especially well developed in materials research and production. Depending on your need when looking at published data, you might require quality indicators ranging from general specifications for a class of material to certified standards of specific compounds. In active research, you might find yourself working with commercial data with specifications provided by the manufacturer, or with preliminary data from collaborating projects.

NIST provides a decision tree to classify property data and determine appropriateness in the context of purpose and use. This protocol is freely available as a simple interactive assessment tool originally developed for the NIST Ceramic WebBook and is a reasonable check-list when working with any published data where quality and provenance is a consideration. 3   Indicative questions for literature and data evaluation include:

Is the source journal peer reviewed?

Are the experimental methods adequately described to be repeatable?

Are any compounds characterized well enough to identify?

Are the results consistent with other indications in the published literature?

Does the explanation build on previously published research?

Do the authors address alternate explanations of the data with further experiments?

As with the scientific research process in general, the provenance of the resulting observations and explanations is important when considering whether the information is of sufficient quality. If little is known concerning the who, what, why, where, when, and how aspects of a research project, it could be considered of indeterminate quality and therefore unacceptable for reference. Referencing the original source of the data, as well as any available provenance, lets the reader make a judgment about the quality and applicability of these data.

Data management is of increasing interest to research-granting agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), which as of 2011 requires all granted projects to include a data management plan. In 2009, an Interagency Working Group on Digital Data developed recommendations for managing data, including some general components to consider for a management plan: “provide for the full digital data life cycle and…describe, as applicable, the types of digital data to be produced; the standards to be used; provisions and conditions for access; requirements for protection of appropriate privacy, confidentiality, security, or intellectual property rights; and provisions for long-term preservation”. 4   More or less specific guidelines are being developed by the various US funding agencies; the NSF is primarily leaving this to be determined at the level of peer-review and program management to reflect best practices for disciplines and other “communities of interest”. 5   The provenance documentation practices discussed above should be rigorous enough to cover most data management plan requirements.

Ultimately, the purpose of scientific research is to contribute to the greater scientific knowledge base in a useful way and lead to applications for society. The ideas and efforts towards this process are considered property of an intellectual nature and are governed through their documentation. The legal framework of intellectual property is to translate the association of scientists with novel ideas and processes into terms that can serve in the practicable everyday world of business, including documentation for provenance and remuneration. In legal terms, intellectual property is about ownership and the potential benefits therein. It was designed by Congress to address Article 1 of the United States Constitution: “to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Tımes to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries”. 6  

Novelty is a core consideration in supporting scientists’ and companies’ rights to own an idea or a process. The definition of novelty in most jurisdictions is delineated by first public disclosure: anywhere, in any venue, for any purpose. Because of the high potential for value, most publishers in the field of chemistry will not accept work that has been extensively disclosed in a public venue. Patent applicability can hinge on the date and nature of disclosure and becomes especially critical when coordinating rights globally. Ideally, the first public appearance of an idea that is well enough researched to enter the scientific record should be well documented, most often in a published article or patent application. These forms of communication are readily citable, with fairly rigorous presentation of content. However, the first public disclosure of one's research may often be much less rigorous, such as a presentation at a conference. As a result, chemists need to be mindful of future plans to publish in journals or file patent applications as they prepare their presentations.

Scientific research, particularly chemical research, is expensive. Public and private monies earmarked for basic research are available competitively. The chemical industry is interested in productive chemical technologies to make a return on the investment of development. Publications, including patents, are professional scientists’ and chemical companies’ key to sustainable funding and growth through claim to ownership. Most scientific publications are considered under one of two flavors of intellectual property, copyright, or patenting.

1.2.3.1 Copyright

In its legal form, copyright is at least two levels removed from the everyday world of scientific research. It does not relate to experimental design, nor does it contribute to the process of good writing. For most authors, it only seems to come into play when one is trying to publish, and then it often appears as a barrier. Why would a chemist want to have anything to do with copyright or even think about it? It comes down to basic issues surrounding the sharing of creative work with others and, in turn, re-using their work. Your greatness as a scientist lies in your ideas, but these remain in your head and might as well be mist unless you express them in a form that resonates with those whose attention you want. Once your audience takes notice, it will be of the idea, and, in the excitement, you want to be remembered as its originator. Copyright law provides a recognition stamp for a piece of work that captures an idea and governs the ways in which these ideas may be re-used by other scientists.

Copyright protects the expression of any creative act such as music, art, journalism, fiction writing, and many other endeavors where people may want to seek compensation and/or credit for their work. The author originally owns the rights to his or her work, meaning that, for the work to be “copyrighted”, he or she does not need to do anything more formal than capture it in a tangible medium (including online). However, as a legal tool, copyright must be able to stand up in court if the rights of ownership are in dispute. Every researcher hopes their work will be of sufficient interest in his or her discipline that it will be discovered and read by other researchers, granting agencies, and chemical businesses. The potential value of a paper is tied up in where it is exposed and what can then be done with the content, activities overseen by copyright. As the initial copyright owner, the author needs to consider how best to manage the exposure and re-use of the work to meet his or her personal and professional needs.

Copyright is automatically assigned to an idea “the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device”; 7   the rights and opportunities thereby granted are up to the owner to manage and stipulate to the public world. Currently, one of the primary roles of scientific publishers is to formally establish the first public disclosure of a work that invokes those rights, and reputable publishing houses are knowledgeable in both the scientific discipline and the ways of copyright. Publishers also provide additional value by coordinating with the vast network of publishing peers in a discipline to review the quality of the contribution and by placing the work among others of good quality in reputable journals, thus increasing the collective potential to be noticed by the right people. To manage and guarantee all of these services, publishers want a specified relationship with copyright that oversees the legal status of all these activities. In exchange for publishing your article, most scientific publishers will require transfer of your copyright: in effect, transfer of ownership of the work. As the original copyright owner, you always have the option to self-publish if you are prepared to manage your rights, the evidence of first disclosure and any further development and if you believe your work is strong enough to stand on its own.

For the vast majority of scientific articles published in traditional journals, once a manuscript is accepted for publication, it is likely that the authors will be asked to sign an agreement or contract that includes language regarding the copyright of the work. Many contracts require the author to transfer copyright to the publisher, meaning that they will then own all the rights to the article. To do anything further with the article, authors and readers alike will need to seek permission from the publisher as the new rights holder. This includes posting copies of the article on a website, sharing it with colleagues, and using figures in presentations or classes, even if the author is the one teaching them. It also includes reusing any of the content subsequently in a thesis or dissertation. Given the original intention of copyright to support the creativity of the original author and the rather dire impact of cutting you off from your work by transferring all such rights, many publishers will return several rights under the same contract, generally giving permission for the author to share copies with individual colleagues and re-use figures in presentations, classes and dissertations. Because the publisher continues to be the copyright owner, they will usually ask you to provide a citation or a copyright notice in the new venue for any part of your article that you re-use. The American Chemical Society presents FAQs and other learning materials on copyright for publishing authors. 8  

It is always an option to seek permission to do anything that is not specified in a contract, and most scientific publishers will grant this for non-profit oriented uses, especially by the original authors. To use other people's work, you will also need to seek permission from the copyright owner. It is not usually difficult to gain permission for common types of re-use, such as reproducing figures or quoting a brief section of text, many publishers now have automatic permissions systems, such as the RightsLink service used by the Publications Division of the American Chemical Society ( http://pubs.acs.org/page/copyright/permissions.html ) and other major publishers, which can be used to grant permission for certain pre-determined uses. It is important to note that the requirements for re-use will differ from publisher to publisher, so it is important to follow the form through to the end. Individual scientists in academic institutions making copies of articles (print or digital) for their own general reading purposes usually do not need to seek direct permission from copyright owners to keep these copies. This type of use is provisioned in the Copyright Act as “fair use”. The Fair Use provision addresses a number of types of re-use commonly associated with academic, educational and other non-profit endeavors, such as limited and restricted copies for individual research and teaching. The general understanding is that the use will be small scale and not translate to commercial potential that is still protected for the owner. For more information on acceptable fair use, see The Factsheet on Fair Use, 9   the Circular 21 from the U.S. Copyright Office, 10   or consult a legal authority.

1.2.3.2 Managing Rights in the Digital Environment

Rights associated with intellectual property are not defined relative to format or genre. However, in the digital environment, the scope of the playing field is changed. There is much broader access potential and a much richer technical environment for re-use and re-purposing of content, such as in data-driven research. Simultaneously, the global political and economic environment has encouraged increased participation in scientific research and the chemical enterprise. There are vastly more scientific manuscripts produced than the expanding journal options can absorb, and the peer-review system is swamped. There is a rapidly increasing readership and increasing pressure to publish manuscripts directly online to increase speed and availability. Emerging data-driven approaches to research and development demand greater technical treatment and access to content.

Players on the field have responded to these drivers accordingly by intensifying their approaches with overall compounding effects on the flow of information. Higher potential for global-reaching commercial value coupled with perceived higher competitive threat spurs content owners to tighten rights management measures. In the absence of acceptable standard practice, such measures have tapped into other legal tools such as contract law, and technically based restrictions on access and use, currently enforced through the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DCMA). Typically, these restrictions limit use far more than with analog information sources. The most visible restriction to researchers is the amount that can be downloaded from various information sources, including database result sets, journal articles, and book chapters. Printing, saving, filing in reference management tools, or forwarding to colleagues may all be restricted or disallowed altogether.

There are other subtler, but no less critical impacts on long-term access and use as specifications of ownership and hosting of the scholarly literature are shifting. Most electronic scholarly journal content is made available to users through license rather than sale as print subscriptions had been. Libraries have negotiated new terms for access in perpetuity to fulfill their mission to make sure that articles are available in the long term. Since publishers remain the content owners, they, rather than libraries, are now also responsible for archiving. Third-party services are emerging to support the ongoing technical integrity of electronic information.

The online environment has increased the potential for the sharing of work; however, it is still important to the integrity of a work to manage the rights of re-use and provenance even if the content is openly available for the initial use of reading. Creative Commons is a non-profit organization developing a new approach to managing and communicating terms of copyright of work in the digital space. The underlying principle is that the work will be openly available for public dissemination and use with a variety of conditions specified by the owners. Several licenses are available with various combinations of specifications for attribution, sharing and commercial purposes. Creative Commons licensing is based on copyright and provides the legal code to uphold it. Additionally the licenses include versions of the terms expressed for owners and users not legally trained and also in machine-readable form to communicate and functionally enable rights and permissions in the digital context; see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ for more information. As the global legal climate surrounding intellectual property establishes itself in the digital environment, content authors, owners, and users juggle a complicated information landscape.

1.2.3.3 Ethics

Authors have certain ethical obligations to the scientific enterprise. Publishing contracts will often include requirements that the work submitted presents original research, an accurate account of the research performed, and an objective discussion of its significance. They further stipulate that all coauthors must be aware of the submission, that the authors submit their work to only one journal at a time, and that they disclose the submission history of the manuscript. 11   Original work should not plagiarize text or figures from other published works, even if prepared by the same authors. The tendency towards self-plagiarism is particularly problematic as researchers build on their own previous work, but each newly published work should have enough novelty to stand as a separate and distinct contribution. Connections to previous work, by the authors or others, should be fully attributed and referenced. Permissions for more extensive use of previous content, such as figures in a review article should be sought from the copyright owner, as discussed above. Such practices constitute a code of conduct and personal responsibility that is core to the definition and ongoing integrity of chemistry research. For further reading on best practices for scientists, see “On Being a Scientist”, freely available from the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. 12  

1.2.3.4 Patenting

Patenting is another approach to intellectual property that focuses on the design of technology, human-invented approaches to accomplishing a specified task. This type of intellectual protection involves a different form of documentation, and the resulting patent literature constitutes the primary contribution of the chemical industry. Rights owners are trading public disclosure of their approach for a limited period of exclusivity to develop any commercial potential. Patents allow the public to benefit in the longer term through healthy competition and additional development, while still supporting the pursuit of commercial viability by the originator. Otherwise, owners of commercial processes might keep successful technologies secret indefinitely. A granted patent supports this right for the first party to file, even if others come up with similar ideas independently, as long as the invention is novel. The United States also requires that the invention have utility and offer a non-obvious change to existing technology. Assignees have twenty years to develop and market the technology without competition should they pursue it.

The chemical syntheses and refinement processes developed in industry are patentable, which makes the window of exclusivity a highly valuable right in the commercial sector. As a result, patents are carefully construed to cover a broad a range of potential approaches within each technology to give companies flexibility and multiple stepping-stones to pursue. Technologies developed within the scope of academic research are also patentable, and universities will often contract with commercial partners to scale and market promising technologies. A few technologies out of millions of patents prove to be of high market value, and the owning companies will fiercely defend their exclusive advantage. While development rights are exclusive, the disclosed design is public information, and, although the patent is written in such a way as to obfuscate the critical pieces as much as possible, it can still be very useful for indicating the direction of proprietary research in a given area, as well as providing other important chemical information, such as characterization properties. As a result, patents are a rich body of chemical literature publically available to every research chemist and worthy of serious consideration; approaches to using patent literature are more fully discussed in a later chapter of this book. For further reading on patenting relevant to chemistry, see the handbook “What Every Chemist Should Know About Patents”, available from the American Chemical Society. 13  

1.2.4.1 Primary Literature

The first time an observation or idea appears in a public medium constitutes first disclosure and is categorized as primary literature. This is the important point for discovery and the critical point at which an idea has enough scientific potential behind it to become part of the development of a scientific discipline: “if your research does not generate papers, it might just as well not have been done”. 14   The primary literature represents the state of a research area and will supply you with information on methods and protocols. In chemistry, many primary publications appear in the form of research articles, clustered in journals ranging from general or multidisciplinary to specialized by sub-discipline, methodology, or nationality. Patents, conference papers, and technical reports also constitute a significant portion of the primary literature globally across the chemistry sub-disciplines. The authors, editors, and reviewers of the various primary resources have reviewed the information and deemed it publishable, but it remains to the researcher to locate it and decide if it is relevant to his or her own work.

1.2.4.2 Secondary Literature

Over one million primary publications are indexed by the Chemical Abstracts Service each year in chemistry and its related fields. 15   It is not possible to follow the developments or even find relevant information in any one area without additional organizational tools. Publications that parse, abstract, index, or otherwise break down and group the information and ideas appearing in the primary literature are categorized as secondary literature. There are two general types of secondary literature, depending on the content and purpose. Abstracting and indexing services facilitate research of ideas by organizing the bibliographic information of the primary literature. These tools tend to be large-scale resources, covering a broad range of primary sources to facilitate multidisciplinary and comprehensive research. Databases extract and aggregate specific information from the primary literature to create high-value collections of experimental, analytical, or preparative information. These collections tend to be fairly specialized by type of information or research methodology.

Opportunities for searching in an area of interest simultaneously across multiple information sources and types are becoming more prominent in the web-enabled, digital information environment. Chemical Abstracts Service is one of the most prominent secondary literature providers, specializing in thorough coverage and indexing of the chemistry literature through a variety of systems, including SciFinder and STN (Science & Technology Network). SciFinder links different types of bibliographic, characterization, and preparative information from within the primary literature to enhance the research process from idea to experimental design. Successful use of the secondary literature tools will contribute to your knowledge of a research area. Developers of these tools carefully manage the inclusion and organization of primary literature sources based on scope and perceived quality, but no additional value-based judgment is offered beyond this. The intellectual process of identifying what specific articles and information is relevant information remains to the researcher.

1.2.4.3 Tertiary Literature

Even with the vast number of primary publications in the chemistry-related disciplines and the wide variety of secondary tools available to navigate them, a scientist may still seek additional input to ascertain the gestalt of the research in an area before trying to search it directly. Such scenarios could include a scientist pushing into an unfamiliar research area, a lab group changing its approach to an experimental methodology, or a chemistry graduate student learning to practice research. There are several types of literature in chemistry designed to give an overview of a research area, methodology or practice, these resources are referred to as tertiary literature. Review articles and chapter-books give an overview of a research field at a given time. They are written by experts in the field, long-time practicing scientists, and can cover the development of the primary theories, branches into other fields, applications in industry, primary educational models, future directions with high research potential, and even research lines that didn’t work out. Treatises and handbooks meticulously review the developments of specific research methodologies or experimental best practices in various areas of chemistry, such as organic synthesis. Graduate-level texts, encyclopedias and other primers, such as this book, are another type of tertiary literature designed to introduce an inexperienced researcher to a particular field. Tertiary literature sources offer expert value-based judgments of the published literature and assessment of data in the research area under consideration. It is important to keep in mind that these sources are out of date as soon as they are written in terms of the state of the science in any given area; they are a great starting point to a new area of research but not a robust finishing point for preparing your own experiments and publications.

Each published article has potential in the scientific enterprise, waiting to be found and read by another scientist who sees its potential and can build on it. A key aspect of this path to successful contribution is how other scientists who would be interested in the content of an article happen upon it. An early part of the discovery process for many researchers is the groupings of articles that make up issues of journals that are read regularly. There are many other points of connectivity; the units of the primary literature and the research experiments, observations and conclusions that they represent do not exist in isolation within their host journals. Research articles and patents build on previous reportings, and, in turn, influence those who subsequently read them; the scientific ideas in each article are linked to other published articles. There are many different ways that individual scientists approach their literature practice and process of finding new articles of relevance to their current research projects. However, they are all based on some kind of link from one article to another, one scientist to another, or one idea to another, with each subsequent link related to the former in some way.

For a specific research project, an idea may start with one article read by a scientist. The scientist may then read some of the article's references for better background, then find papers that cite the starting article to see how others have built on it, then examine articles that cite the same references as the original article to see how others have built upon the earlier research, and so on. Much like a pearl that builds up in layers upon the initial stimulation of a grain of sand, this technique of building up a cadre of articles and research awareness through following links is referred to as “pearl growing”, or “the Iterative Approach to literature searching.” 16   Common link paths highlighted by the discovery services in the secondary literature include journals, publishers, authors, institutions, sub-discipline, methodology, type of application, compounds, and physical properties, as well as both references and citations. It is the prerogative of the researcher to navigate the various paths to find the best literature for their particular purpose. The networked online environment is having a profound impact on the ability of researchers to move along these links to aid discovery of information and build knowledge bases. The majority of chemical information resources are available online. As more standards emerge and develop for encoding text and other information to appear on the Web, more links are being activated between common information elements across resources that go well beyond the traditional journal, author, and references.

Chemical information is in a unique position in terms of development potential in the online environment, influenced by a variety of factors that complicate the realization of this potential. The chemistry field is actually one of the earlier pioneers of online representation of information, with machine-readable encoding systems for chemical compounds dating back to the line notation systems of the late 1940s. Chemical information is also exceedingly complex and nuanced in what it represents; structural characterization of compounds, chemical and physical properties of compounds, preparation and purification methodologies, and analytical techniques are all considered by chemical scientists in their research. This intensity around information has been accompanied by elaborate representation schema for various aspects of the information since the heyday of alchemy. In 1919, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry was formed to more systematically consider and review chemical information representation and apply standardization in some critical areas internationally, including chemical compound notation for both human and machine reading purposes. 17   The latest example of efforts in this area is the IUPAC International Chemical Identifier (InChI), which provides interoperable chemical structure encoding between different publishers and chemical information systems. 18  

Robust and standardized machine-readable encoding of information has also enabled the emergence of new and powerful data-driven approaches to research. Informatics, as this type of science is generally called, is touching on many fields, including chemistry. Research processes that were previously managed by the researcher, such as data collection and management, are increasingly automated, and ultimately the computer can activate a variety of links among and between data sets to indicate patterns of potential interest. It is still up to the human researcher to make some determination of the value and to pursue further research of any of these patterns.

As these computer systems become increasingly sophisticated, they are beginning to perform more of the valuation themselves, “learning” from patterns of previously assigned values and performing self-assessment based on error rate analysis. This area, in which the computer applies value-based analysis to research input, is referred to as semantic processing. This approach is not only being applied to numeric or other non-textual research data, but to the linking patterns used by scientists when searching the literature, as well as the early stages of analysis of text in the primary literature and, by extension, a kind of analysis of the intellectual contribution of individual scientists. This sounds very much like the literature research process for individual humans that we have been discussing throughout this chapter. What could be lost with the automation of more processes formerly performed by educated chemists, and what more could those researchers do beyond what is possible now with more time freed from automated tasks? As more data, including the direct intellectual contribution of researchers, is presented online and linked to other information, pattern recognition and evaluation is enabled and the impact of these considerations will become increasing prominent. There certainly are implications regarding productivity value and re-use of material considered to be intellectual property and therefore protected by copyright or patent law. There may also be implications for what is considered by the chemistry community to be acceptable standards of practice when balancing machine and human analysis and valuation to further the research enterprise.

Amidst the complexities and complications of the chemical information landscape, libraries focus primarily on enabling use of scholarly materials. An ideal goal for searching the literature for researchers and information providers to strive for might be 90% unassisted use 24/7 anywhere, complemented by detailed support the remaining 10% of the time. Information providers are in the business to consider highly dis-intermediated experiences for researchers to enable the most efficient approach within a researcher's individual process and point of need. Both content and access are key components of a dis-intermediated research process, through combination of clearly defined scope of content, expert curation, value added content analysis, and automated organizational structure. Expert curation is the highest value added to most chemistry resources, involving scientists and other field experts to determine what content to include and highlight, what links to include and highlight and how to put these together to clarify the opportunities and potential indicators for researchers.

Researchers’ needs not covered by 90% solutions require expert assistance. These needs should not be underestimated; they could translate to “aha moments” for researchers, critical learning opportunities for students, or indicators of emerging areas of chemistry research and potential in the information landscape. The questions you are asking may be cutting edge and unique enough to not be represented in standard ways in searching tools. In a well-meant effort to maximize the opportunities of the online environment, database and information providers often try to make tools more intuitive. In reality, expert search functions are often diminished, resulting in more difficulty finding relevant information. If you have spent over 20minutes in fruitless searching, this is not good use of your time; ask for help. There are experts who search for information for a living; they often have access to better tools and have invested time to develop better work-arounds; they can save you a lot of time.

This volume is authored by chemistry-focused librarians across the United States and Canada who perceive a need to more broadly support graduate students and researchers in chemistry with their literature use. In addition to expertise in the literature landscape of chemistry, librarians have access to networks of other experts, and participate in a variety of services and activities to further broaden both the support and expertise they can provide. They curate specialized finding tools in chemistry, such as properties finders and virtual shelf browsers; offer training, guides, and feedback opportunities with specific resources and search techniques; and actively participate in scientific societies and liaise with publishers and other professional development programs for chemists. All of this expertise is only as good as it is useful for chemists; we welcome the opportunity to assist your literature research in a variety of ways. Another useful volume addressing the broad issues of publication is the ACS Style Guide, 3 rd edition published in 2006 by the American Chemical Society. 19  

The balance of supporting researchers in a robust searching process through independent options coupled with specified assistance represents a moving target as the research landscape continuously changes. Iterative development is critical for information providers to aim for a successful highly dis-intermediated environment. Follow-up analysis of assisted experiences is needed to assess what is indicated about gaps in dis-intermediated solutions or potential new service areas. Such are the requirements of robust information systems and services and chemistry information providers tend to invest significant resources into ensuring robust content, organization, support, and other added value. As the digital markup of chemical information improves, more direct engagement is possible with non-tactile literature and libraries transition support of print-based research processes to online-based research processes.

A literature search is a significant part of the overall research process. It is up to you to leverage the structure of the literature, discovery tools, pearl growing, valuation, and good tracking skills to tap its potential. If you do not take the time and care to plan your process up front, you will quickly be swamped by the vastness of the literature, and likely miss key findings or painstakingly recreate experimental methods previously published. Please remember Frank Westheimer's aphorism, “Why spend a day in the library when you can learn the same thing by working in the laboratory for a month?” 20  

When searching through the literature, the information you have in hand – previous research, active authors, chemical structural information – can serve as starting and linking points. Since your search of the literature may be for background information, a comprehensive sweep of previously characterized compounds of interest, a specific set of physical properties, or a particular synthesis route, what you already know will help identify which information resources are best suited to help. The remainder of this book provides some description of the more commonly used chemical information resources designed to help the researcher determine which to use and how best to get started for various needs.

Given the complex nature of chemical compound characterization and the breadth of research fields that touch on chemistry, some types of chemical information are more complicated and require advanced searching methodologies. Good starting places and best practices for more specialized searching are detailed in the later chapters of this book. This is not a comprehensive sweep of all potential approaches to searching in chemistry, so as you specialize in your area of research, becoming thoroughly competent in the relevant advanced searching methodologies will be critical for a robust research program.

Reviewing and assessing the results requires an understanding of what additional relevant information may be available, evaluating new search leads, such as other associated compounds, and recognizing better index terms. Reviewing specific result records will indicate what can be expected in that information resource, and gives a sense of how structural, reaction or property information is encoded. To quote from the conclusion of the physical properties chapter: “important skills for a searcher are persistence, creativity, and a sense of what avenues are most likely to be successful and which ones are unproductive… not unlike the qualities of a good detective”. 21  

So what are some practical tips for mastering your work with the chemistry literature? At Cornell University, we have created a guide titled, “7 Ways to Be a More Efficient Chemist” that boils down several key activities you can set up right away to help yourself in the literature aspects of your research ( http://guides.library.cornell.edu/7chemistry , original guide by Kirsten Hensley, 2008). The guide points to specific resources at Cornell University, but the principles apply anywhere for any chemist at any stage of research.

1.3.2.1 Streamline Your Connections to the Literature Resources You Use Regularly So You Can Access Them Anywhere, Any Time, and from Any Device

Most research libraries have a proxy system in place for connecting to resources when you are off-campus; many also provide bookmarklets or apps for re-loading web pages with your institutional authentication so you can log in from anywhere. Set up bookmarks in your web browser of choice, or use a webroot or some other system with your most frequently and regularly used resources, using the links provided by your library, which should include the proxy authentication. Apps covering a variety of literature resources and searching options are also increasingly available if working on smaller mobile devices fits into your work style.

1.3.2.2 Organize the Hundreds of Articles and References You Collect in Your Literature Research

Many citation management programs are available with various organizational features and costs ranging from free to reasonable educational discounts. You can group references by topic, project or specific question you are researching. Most will import PDF files and some will pull out the bibliographic information for you so you can organize the papers. Some allow for collaborative work. Most literature databases will export references in formats directly importable to these programs; some programs can even be used to search other content or linked into directly.

1.3.2.3 Regularly Monitor the Contents of the Top Journals in Chemistry and Your Specific Sub-discipline Once You Start Actively Researching

Most scientific journals provide email or RSS feed alerts of issue content for free. JournalTOCs ( http://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/ ) collects thousands of feed links to scholarly journal tables of contents, and you can create groups of journals to monitor from this free service. If you are not familiar with the journals in a particular sub-discipline, you can get an initial list to start by exploring the Journal Citation Reports ISI Impact Factor rankings if your institution subscribes to this assessment tool. These rankings are based on numbers of citations to a journal relative to the number of articles published within a fixed time-frame, roughly indicating how much impact the research published therein is having on informing further research in a given area. Review journals tend to show the highest impact with this measure, as they are broad in scope and can be particularly helpful for reference when new to a research area.

1.3.2.4 Set up Alerts in the Literature Databases to Monitor New Research by Topic

This technique will cut across journals and other literature sources and allow you to zero in on specific methodologies or compounds of interest on a more specific level. Most databases, such as SciFinder, Web of Science, MEDLINE, etc. , offer alerts based on your searches of interest. You can also save searches and come back to them to build up a critical mass of literature in an area to export to your citation management program.

1.3.2.5 Read Books and Review Articles for Background Material

You will be expected to build up knowledge of various areas pretty quickly as you begin more research. These could be the state of current research areas, chemical reaction or other experimental methodologies, or potential for application. Treatises and review journals as mentioned above are available that cover all these types of information, as well as periodic review articles in primary journals for more specific or timely topics.

1.3.2.6 Be Familiar with the Options for Acquiring the Full Text of Articles through Your Library or Information Center

Most research libraries have fairly robust collections of electronic journals that will be directly available to you or will provide document delivery for needed articles. Finding these links among thousands of others will vary by local institution. No research library has direct access to all published literature, digital or hard copy, but there are a number of collaborative systems that research libraries use to make content available among institutions. Most libraries participate in some kind of inter-library loaning system for hard copy, photocopies, and increasingly for electronic content as well. Systems for article sharing tend to be national or international, many regional approaches also exist for books, including service from joint storage facilities.

1.3.2.7 Ask for Help from Librarians with All of the above Tasks and More

If we don’t know specifically how, we will find the right assistance for you. This is the top priority and core responsibility of the public services librarians in any library. Most research libraries will have librarians who specialize their service in key disciplines, including chemistry, which tends to be a literature-heavy discipline.

1.3.2.8 Bonus: Be Aware of Specialized Electronic Reference Resources for Reaction Specifications, Physical Properties, and other Scientific Data

More and more of the data supporting chemistry research are becoming available in online venues. The traditional reference collections in research libraries supporting chemistry tend to be expansive and well used but cumbersome and probably not as well discovered as they could be for supporting experimental and technical work. As these resources become more available online and libraries are able to support them, it can have a positive impact on your workflow.

Overall, remember that the library is intended to support your literature research, in accessing content, improving your searches, and helping you become a more efficient and better prepared chemist.

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CHEM 156: Materials Chemistry

Literature review.

• Find Articles
• Find Dissertations and Theses
• ILL; Scan & Deliver
• Managing Citations

Reviewing the Literature: Why do it?

• Personal: To familiarize yourself with a new area of research, to get an overview of a topic, so you don't want to miss something important, etc.
• Required writing for a journal article, thesis or dissertation, grant application, etc.

Literature reviews vary; there are many ways to write a literature review based on discipline, material type, and other factors.

How to write a literature review?

• Literature Reviews - Purdue Online Writing Lab
• Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students  - What is a literature review? What purpose does it serve in research? What should you expect when writing one? - NCSU Video

Where to get help (there are lots of websites, blogs , articles,  and books on this topic) :

• Dissertations A Guide to Preparing and Submitting your Dissertation - GSAS
• Official documentation - find out from publisher websites, journal editors, dissertation advisors, etc. what their expectations are for a lit review
• How to prepare a scientific doctoral dissertation based on research articles (2012)
• Writing a graduate thesis or dissertation (2016)
• The good paper : a handbook for writing papers in higher education (2015)
• Proposals that work : a guide for planning dissertations and grant proposals (2014)
• Theses and dissertations : a guide to planning, research, and writing (2008)
• Talk to your professors, advisors, mentors, peers, etc. for advice
• << Previous: Managing Citations
• Next: Exercise >>
• Last Updated: Sep 26, 2023 12:37 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.harvard.edu/chem156

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Exploring the Chemical Literature

• Review Articles
• Research Articles
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• Create a Query
• Chemical Names
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Reviews: Summary and Synthesis

Reviews summarize and synthesize the current state of the research on a particular topic. Ideally, the writer analyzes all recent literature to provide a coherent narrative of the state of knowledge on that topic. Since reviews do not report new original research, they are part of the Secondary Literature. Review articles will tell you about:

• recent major advances and discoveries
• significant gaps in the research
• current debates
• who's working in a field
• ideas of where research might go next

Review articles typically cover a finite time period (such as the last 5-10 years or since the last major review came out).  They are usually longer than research articles (some might be 100 pages or more!) and have extensive bibliographies. Thus they are excellent places to discover important prior articles on a topic. Unlike research articles, reviews are better places to get background on a topic, although some prior familiarity with it is expected.

(Note:  Narrative reviews in the physical and natural sciences literature should not be confused with " systematic reviews " found in the biomedical and health science literature.  Systematic reviews are completely different in terms of scope and purpose, as well as the methodology behind them.)

Where are reviews published?

Reviews can be found in different kinds of publications.

• JOURNALS:  Many research journals also publish regular or occasional reviews.  Some journals publish only reviews; examples include Chemical Reviews, Accounts of Chemical Research , and Chemical Society Reviews .
• BOOKS:  Most scientific books (monographs) are essentially long reviews or edited collections of review chapters.
• ENCYCLOPEDIAS:  Encyclopedia articles are background reviews intended for a more general audience.  Examples are the Kirk Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology and the Encyclopedia of Analytical Chemistry .
• REVIEW SERIALS:  These publications, which occupy a middle ground between journals and monographs, often have titles like Advances in ..., Progress in ..., or Annual Review of ....  Chapters in these serials can be lengthy and thorough summaries of past and recent research. One of the best known examples in chemistry is Organic Reactions , an irregular series that publishes voluminous and thorough reviews of synthesis techniques.
• Last Updated: Jul 30, 2024 12:41 PM
• URL: https://guides.lib.utexas.edu/chemistry/literaturetutorial

Chemistry Seminar (24-592)

• Peer-review

Literature review

• Communicating science
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• In a primary research article
• In a scientific poster

How do poster session authors decide what articles to include in a brief literature review?  

Take a look at some sample posters .  Can you infer from them why the authors are citing when they do? 

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• Last Updated: May 17, 2024 8:59 AM
• URL: https://libguides.nwmissouri.edu/chemsem

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Chemistry 401 | Chemical Literature

• Getting Started
• Types of Sources in Chemistry
• Chemistry Databases
• Journals and Scholarly Sources
• Literature Review
• Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students What is a literature review? What purpose does it serve in research? What should you expect when writing one? Borrowed from North Carolina State University

What's a literature review?

A literature review is a collection of selected articles, books and other sources about a specific subject. The purpose is to summarize the existing research that has been done on the subject in order to put your research in context and to highlight what your research will add to the existing body of knowledge. Literature reviews are typically organized in some way (chronological, thematic, methodological).

Let's take a look at an example of a literature review in an article, a dissertation, and a review article.

• Article Example: Abused Drugs in Insects Oliveira, J. S.; Baia, T. C.; Gama, R. A.; Lima, K. M. G. Development of a novel non-destructive method based on spectral fingerprint for determination of abused drug in insects: An alternative entomotoxicology approach. Microchemical Journal 2014, 115, 39-46.
• Dissertation Example: Forensic Entomotoxicology Peace, Michelle Renee'. "Forensic Entomotoxicology: A Study in the Deposition and Effects of Amphetamines and Barbiturates in the Larvae of the Black Blow Fly, Phormia Regina." Order No. 3177624 Virginia Commonwealth University, 2005. Ann Arbor: ProQuest. Web. 18 Aug. 2016.
• Review Article: Determination of Post-Burial Entomology Singh R, Sharma S, Sharma A. 2016. Determination of post-burial interval using entomology: A review. J Forensic Leg Med. 42:37-40.

Purpose of a Literature Review

A literature review may constitute an essential chapter of a thesis or dissertation, or may be a self-contained review of writings on a subject. In either case, its purpose is to:

• Place each work in the context of its contribution to the understanding of the subject under review
• Describe the relationship of each work to the others under consideration
• Identify new ways to interpret, and shed light on any gaps in, previous research
• Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly contradictory previous studies
• Identify areas of prior scholarship to prevent duplication of effort
• Point the way forward for further research
• Place one's original work (in the case of theses or dissertations) in the context of existing literature

The literature review itself, however, does not present new primary scholarship.

Elements of a Literature Review

• An overview of the subject, issue or theory under consideration, along with the objectives of the literature review
• Division of sources under review into categories (e.g. those in support of a particular position, those against, and those offering alternative theses entirely)
• Explanation of how each source is similar to and how it varies from the others
• Conclusions as to which sources are best considered in their argument, are most convincing of their opinions, and make the greatest contribution to the understanding and development of their area of research
• Literature Review Worksheet Use to evaluate the contribution of each article to your thesis/question/assertion
• Literature Review Worksheet: Filled in Example of how the sheet might be used
• << Previous: Journals and Scholarly Sources
• Last Updated: Apr 28, 2023 1:29 PM
• URL: https://libguides.wvu.edu/chem401

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Writing a review article: what to do with my literature review

Introduction

Review articles allow the readers to get a landscape view of a topic, but readers can also use the collection of references cited in a review article to dig deeper into a topic. Thus, they are valuable resources to consult. Well written review articles are often highly cited and could increase the visibility and reputation of the authors.

Decisions to make before starting to write a review article

It might be tempting to consider adapting a literature review, that is part of an article, proposal or dissertation, into a published review article. Such a literature review can be used as a starting point to build a review article upon. However, a literature review often does not follow the quality criteria of a formal review article or specific types of reviews and therefore should be reworked based on the steps illustrated in this editorial.

Types of review articles suitable for chemistry education research and practice

Perspectives, narrative and integrative reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, appropriate ways of approaching a (systematic) review – writing a review step-by-step, step 1. topic and research question.

After the topic is chosen, it may be helpful to narrow the review down to a clear aim or question that the review seeks to answer. This helps to facilitate the selection of the publications to be reviewed. In addition to the topic, the author should seek to clarify the aim of the review by identifying the likely audience for such a review and how these individuals would benefit from this particular review. Review articles should explicitly mention the nature and scope of the intended review, as well as making a case for who would benefit from the review and how they would benefit.

Step 2. Determine the search and selection criteria

Step 3. inclusion or exclusion of publications, step 4. synthesis of results, step 5. check for clarity and bias, how should review articles be cited as a reference in cerp manuscripts, reflections on the impact of a review article.

One can raise the question of whether a review article is actually supportive or harmful for the original articles included ( Ketcham and Crawford, 2007 ). Authors tend to cite a review article more often compared to original work, thus lowering the number of citations for the respective articles. However, on the other hand, if studies are included and discussed in a review, readers who would like to learn more or access the original perspectives tend to download, read and possibly cite them as well. The benefits of publishing review articles clearly outweigh any potential shortcomings, and their scarcity in the field of chemistry education opens up a venue for publication calls.

• Alfieri L., Nokes-Malach T. J. and Schunn C. D., (2013), Learning Through Case Comparisons: A Meta-Analytic Review, Educ. Psychol. , 48 , 87–113.
• Bisra K., Liu Q., Nesbit J. C., Salimi F. and Winne P. H., (2018), Inducing Self-Explanation: a Meta-Analysis, Educ. Psychol. Rev. , 30 , 703–725.
• Castro-Alonso J. C., de Koning B. B., Fiorella L. and Paas F., (2021), Five Strategies for Optimizing Instructional Materials: Instructor- and Learner-Managed Cognitive Load, Educ. Psychol. Rev. ,  DOI: 10.1007/s10648-021-09606-9 .
• Flaherty A. A., (2020), A review of affective chemistry education research and its implications for future research, Chem. Educ. Res. Pract. , 21 , 698–713.
• Freeman S., Eddy S. L., McDonough M., Smith M. K., Okoroafor N., Jordt H. and Wenderoth M. P., (2014), Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. , 111 , 8410–8415.
• Kahveci A., (2013), in Tsaparlis G. and Sevian H. (ed.), Concepts of Matter in Science Education , Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 249–278.
• Ketcham C. M. and Crawford J. M., (2007), The impact of review articles, Lab. Invest. , 87 , 1174–1185.
• Rahman M. T. and Lewis S. E., (2020), Evaluating the evidence base for evidence-based instructional practices in chemistry through meta-analysis, J. Res. Sci. Teach. , 57 , 765–693.
• Taber K. S., (2014), The significance of implicit knowledge for learning and teaching chemistry, Chem. Educ. Res. Pract. , 15 , 447–461.
• Taylor and Francis, (2021), What is a review article?, https://authorservices.taylorandfrancis.com/publishing-your-research/writing-your-paper/how-to-write-review-article/.
• Theobald E. J., Hill M. J., Tran E., Agrawal S., Arroyo E. N., Behling S., Chambwe N., Cintrón D. L., Cooper J. D., Dunster G., Grummer J. A., Hennessey K., Hsiao J., Iranon N., Jones L., Jordt H., Keller M., Lacey M. E., Littlefield C. E., Lowe A., Newman S., Okolo V., Olroyd S., Peecook B. R., Pickett S. B., Slager D. L., Caviedes-Solis I. W., Stanchak K. E., Sundaravardan V., Valdebenito C., Williams C. R., Zinsli K. and Freeman S., (2020), Active learning narrows achievement gaps for underrepresented students in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and math, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. , 117 , 6476–6483.

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