540 or QD: The Literature of Chemistry

Part 11: The Internet, Revised, Part B

Judith A. Douville

Physical Science Editor, CHOICE Magazine

This column picks up where the last left off and suggests Internet sites that are pertinent to chemistry and its teaching and research. The sites in this column are new since the last version of this column was published. There are no print materials appearing in this revision. As stated before, the main sites visited in the original version of this column, especially those of major societies and organizations, still are important for students, faculty, and professionals. Please remember that sometimes a Web site’s Internet address (URL, or universal resource locator) may change, and the sites may sometimes become inactive.

5. Resources for Specific Divisions of Chemistry

A. Chemical Basics - The Periodic Table:

ACS periodic table http://www.chemistry.org/portal/a/c/s/1/acsdisplay.html?DOC=sitetools\periodic_table.html

The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a very large professional organization with a long history of scientific association and publication of many well-respected scientific journals. This Web site, their electronic home page, has a number of "clickable" items (at the "Quick Find" pull-down menu), including their very accessible periodic table. Some software does need to be downloaded to use the table.

The Periodic table of comic books http://www.uky.edu/Projects/Chemcomics/

The Periodic Table of Comic Books opens to a colorful periodic table of the elements beneath words of welcome and directions for operation, easily understood by chemistry students, for whom this site was designed. The user quickly accesses files on chemical elements in comic books either by a click on any of the 103 elemental symbols in the periodic table or by carrying out a keyword search. Clicking on an element or entering a keyword takes the user directly to the comic book coverage of that element, presenting thumbnails for each comic book page available. Clicking on the thumbnail takes the user to the pages (sometimes a full story) and gives access to a short history of the particular comic book.

Periodic table of the elements http://www.ktf‑split.hr/periodni/en/

The molar mass of a molecule can be easily calculated on this Web site (University of Split in Croatia): just click on the Molar Mass calculator and type in the chemical formula for the desired substance. This very responsive site allows anyone to view the Periodic Table in five languages (English, French, Croatian, German, and Italian), and makes available an excellent printable Periodic Table of the elements from 2001 data. It is easy to access data for any one of the elements in seven languages (Croatian, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish) by clicking on the symbol in the table or by using an index function and accessing the data by symbol or name of the desired element. The site also contains an excellent scientific calculator, access to programs for chemists and non-chemists, and links for chemists and chemistry journals.

The pictorial periodic table http://chemlab.pc.maricopa.edu/periodic/periodic.html

The Web site provides an interactive periodic table, including a large database of properties of the elements that can be searched, collated, and sometimes graphed according to the choices of the visitor. A lot of isotopic information is included. The primary organization of this site is, appropriately, through the periodic table itself. There are a large number of links to sites related to the periodic table in various ways. Among the strengths of this site are its search and graphing capabilities.

Visual elements http://www.chemsoc.org/viselements/

This Web site is basically a stand-alone periodic table of the chemical elements. The Chemical Society (UK), its creator, has made sure that the data given are correct and well described so there can be no ambiguity. It also commissioned artwork for each of the 109 listed elements to be part of the table. With the exception of the art, all the information in the table can be gleaned from other sources. Navigation is straightforward; the graphics are first class. The site loads easily. The site's organization is the natural organization of the periodic table.

WebElements http://www.webelements.com/

This interactive Web site is based on the periodic table of elements, with a wealth of information regarding the atomic elements. It is a delightful blend of content, intelligent design, and graphical features. The site is easily accessed and includes frame and frameless versions. Information related to each element is divided into sections and includes background, crystallography, isotope, and spectroscopy information as well as chemical, electronic, biological, and geological data. The data quality and reliability of the content seem very good. Three-dimensional crystal structures are provided for most elements using graphics, PDB (Protein Data Bank) Web viewers (atomic coordinate files), and virtual reality Web plug-ins. The element names, pronounced in English, are also included as sound files.

The Wooden periodic table table http://www.theodoregray.com/PeriodicTable/

This site features a real wooden table in the shape of a periodic table of the elements. At the image of the table, users can click on each of the elements to be taken to descriptions of those elements. The site also features collections of elements sorted in different ways; Spell with Elements game; automatic chemical reaction balancing calculation; and How do I get my own real Periodic Table collection?

B. History of Chemistry:

History of chemistry http://www.chemistrycoach.com/history_of_chemistry.htm

This site is divided into three main sections: Biographies of Chemists, Classic Papers in Chemistry, History of Science. Each section, essentially collections of links to other sites, is organized differently. The Biographies section contains links to sites about individual scientists (including all Nobel Laureates in chemistry) and also to collections of biographies. Scientists are listed in alphabetical order. The names of all Nobel laureates are linked to the Nobel e-Museum (http://www.nobel.se), and the years of their awards are highlighted. In Classic Papers in Chemistry, one can find links to material about major discoveries written in the words of the scientists themselves (English translations when appropriate). The final section contains links to other history of science sites, organized by discipline (chemistry, physics, etc.).

History of chemistry - Chemical Heritage Foundation http://www.chemheritage.org/

The Foundation promotes the history of chemistry and publishes a number of works that have to do with chemical history. Other activities of the Foundation include events, a catalog of their library, oral history program, Chemical Heritage magazine, Chemical Dateline 2004, traveling exhibits, Preserving the History of Chemistry, and employment.

C. Analytical Chemistry:

Basic liquid chromatography http://hplc.chem.shu.edu/BOOK/content.html

The site is essentially an online book, organized in frames, with nine sections and approximately a hundred subsections. The site should be useful to undergraduate science majors wanting an introduction to liquid chromatography. The scope is reasonably broad at an introductory level. Organization is thematic, with such topics as instrumentation, detectors, theory, adsorbents, reverse-phase, and GPC. Links usually work, except in the Column Selection section. Graphics are used effectively.

FTIRsearch.com http://ftirsearch.com/

FTIRsearch.com is a new Internet service allowing users to upload an infrared or Raman spectrum and compare it to thousands of standard compounds in spectral libraries owned by the developers of the site, Nicolet Instruments and Galaxy Corp. It costs about $25 to do a spectral search or $10 to search a text file of the names of materials. Once the search is begun, the user can modify the search parameters as much as desired for no additional cost, even if the modified searches are carried out at some other time. Users upload the unknown spectrum, choose the libraries for the search, set the search parameters, and go. A list of the best hits is returned and the known and unknown spectra can be overlaid for comparison purposes. To use the service, users purchase "credits" at $1.00 each using a credit card. In addition to basic search algorithms, there are advanced search capabilities, an interpretation guide, and a free newsletter for members of the service. A large number of IR libraries that contain nearly 72,000 compounds of forensic and industrial interest are available, and 16,000 Raman spectra are available for comparison.

Library4Science http://www.chromatography-online.org/

This site was established to bring technical reference and educational resources to the Internet, in a form that can be read directly at the site, or downloaded as .pdf files for a small fee. The first offering at the site is the Chrom-Ed Series by R.P.W. Scott. Sidebars carry advertisements for chromatography equipment and books that may be purchased.

Liquid chromatography http://ull.chemistry.uakron.edu/analytical/LC/

The site is structured in frames, and is organized into several categories, including background on separations, processes occurring during liquid chromatography, hardware components, sample injection, columns, and detection. It is possible to work through the set of frames sequentially from beginning to end. Navigation aids include forward and reverse arrows at the bottom of each screen, and section headings in the left window. Scope is basic and informative at the introductory level. The site does not provide full-text search capabilities, though the frame structure provides links to the major topics.

SpecInfo on the Internet http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/mrwhome/109609148/HOME

This fee-based site hosted by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. features more than 434,000 IR, NMR, and mass spectra. Users can search by structure, substructure, complete spectra, individual spectral features, chemical names, and molecular properties. Each entry includes chemical name, molecular formula, molecular weight, literature reference, solvent, standard, and measurement conditions.

D. Physical Chemistry:

Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre http://www.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/

The Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre (CCDC) is a charitable company and teaching institution that maintains the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD). The center's Web site, along with its database, is an invaluable resource for academic and industrial researchers concerned with the structure of organic and metal-organic compounds. The Web site is well organized, easy to navigate, and up-to-date. Most important, it provides clear instructions on how to deposit and retrieve data from the CSD, which contains data for more than a quarter million crystal structures. (Up to ten individual data sets are provided free of charge on request.) The site also provides helpful and reliable links to other Web sites of interest to crystallographers.

Facility for the analysis of chemical thermodynamics http://www.crct.polymtl.ca/fact

This site offers FactSage, a broad-ranging, powerful, and user-friendly package for thermodynamic modeling. The original software and databases were developed to treat thermodynamic properties and make calculations applied to chemical metallurgy. Subsequent research, development, and collaboration produced a software system with capabilities far beyond the original intent. The databases consist of primarily the thermodynamic data of inorganic compounds. Search capabilities are excellent and navigation within the program is very intuitive. Graphics, particularly for phase equilibria, are very good.

Molecular universe http://www.molecularuniverse.com/

This Web site from the UK offers a general introduction to the concepts of molecular and supermolecular structure, presented primarily in text form with illustrations. The information is clear and correct, but the depth is not great. There is some discussion of crystalline and amorphous solids, liquids and solutions, intermolecular forces, large molecule folding, biopolymer structure, interaction between large and small molecules, surface phenomena, history of structure elucidation, and methods of determination of structure. The complete topical index can be used to immediately jump to various molecules and concepts.

E. Inorganic and Nuclear Chemistry:

The Bromine science and environmental forum http://www.bsef.com/

BSEF (The Bromine Science and Environmental Forum), the sponsor of this site, was created by the bromine industry in 1997, specifically by Albemarle Corporation, Dead Sea Bromine Group, Great Lakes Chemical Corporation, and Tosoh Corporation. The site has an industrial orientation, with attention also to matters of scientific, environmental, health, and safety information and issues. A useful site map is available. Stylistically, the site is arranged in frames, though not always obviously so, and is organized topically. Quite a bit of emphasis is placed on fire safety applications of bromine derivatives.

Inorganic crystal structure database http://www.fiz-informationsdienste.de/en/DB/icsd/index.html

The Inorganic Crystal Structure Database (ICSD), with data for more than 70,000 inorganic crystal structures, is invaluable for researchers concerned with the crystal structures of inorganic materials. Although full-search access to the ICSD is only available through annual licensing arrangements, the Web site provides access to demonstration versions of a window-based PC software package called FINDIT and an Internet-accessible search tool called ICSD-for-WWW. A ten-page scientific manual, which provides additional information regarding the notation used in the ICSD, can also be downloaded.

Radiocarbon WEB-info http://www.c14dating.com/

This compendium of information on the theory and practice of radiocarbon dating is online at the radiocarbon laboratories at Waikato University, New Zealand. There are 15 sections, most of which are teaching modules on topics such as measurement, corrections, age calculation, and calibration, including one for young students K-12. Particularly useful will be the linked listings of radiocarbon databases, searchable indexes, and radiocarbon laboratories worldwide. A well-chosen and quite extensive bibliography includes 12 general textbooks.

Table of isotopes http://ie.lbl.gov/toi.htm

Table of Isotopes, easily accessible through Netscape and other search engines, is kept up to date by Lawrence Firestone of Berkeley's National Lawrence Radiation Laboratory. This site provides very detailed data on nuclear structures in atoms, energies, and decay products. The reader can access the data through an online subscription. The site organization is via a periodic table classification, a natural for chemists, and is easily accessible through the usual point-and-click options. Updating is apparently done once a year but may occur more often if there are more data available.

Virtual chemistry http://neon.chem.ox.ac.uk/vrchemistry/openpage.html

Virtual Chemistry offers a chance to experience an undergraduate inorganic chemistry laboratory course from a computer. The site contains a series of four tutorials on topics found in the typical general chemistry course. The crux of this site is the virtual experiments, which offer a step by step procedure and a corresponding video. Experiments are accompanied by a short tutorial (a sort of virtual prelab) that quizzes users as they go along. The site also offers a virtual tour of the chemistry facilities at Oxford University's Department of Chemistry as well as a tour of the surrounding city. The site is easy to navigate, fast to load, and recently updated. It is loaded with graphics and contains a small list of chemistry-related links.

F. Organic Chemistry:

Organic chemistry help http://www.chemhelper.com

The site is organized by categories: tutorials, mechanisms, practice tests, study tips, a question-and-answer feature, a message board, and links to a number of similar sites at other schools. Navigation is simple and text-based, and the site loads quickly. The tutorials and practice exams will probably be most useful to undergraduates studying organic chemistry, but many key topics in organic chemistry are not covered.

Organic chemistry resources worldwide http://www.organicworldwide.net/

This unique site makes it very easy to find the type of information desired, striking a balance between being so broad in coverage that the amount of information is overwhelming and being so narrow that the information is only useful to a small group of people. A student or practicing organic chemist conducting laboratory research will find information in several major categories (coverage is so comprehensive that only a small number of examples are given here for each): the literature (including online journals and databases), experimental topics (ordering chemicals, experiment design, safety issues), analytical techniques, paperwork (notebook keeping, thesis writing, tutorials), communication (conferences, newsgroups, scientific societies), and career planning.

The organometallic hypertextbook http://www.ilpi.com/organomet/index.html

This Web site, with its clear, concise explanations on almost every major topic in the field, is an informative and useful reference tool for those studying organometallic chemistry. The site is arranged by topic and is well cross-referenced within the site with hypertext links. It is easy to navigate and includes a search engine, complete with search tips. Topics (45) range from alkene and alkyne metathesis through allyl complexes, elimination reactions, carbonyl complexes, coordination considerations, electron counting and the 18-electron rule, gamma elimination, insertion reactions, olefin complexes, phosphine complexes, ring opening, and substitution reactions, to name a few of the various areas available.

WEB-sters’ organic chemistry http://ep.llnl.gov/msds/orgchem/

The amount of chemical information on the Internet can be overwhelming. Web sites such as this one, attempting to organize this information, can thus be welcome resources. Links are found to materials (syllabi, exams, animations, lecture notes, problem sets), which instructors may find useful when preparing courses. The site is maintained by a group of Columbia University undergraduates under the supervision of Nicholas Turro (Columbia) and Ron Rusay (UC Berkeley). Updates are done unevenly, with new links added quite recently for some topics and almost two years ago for others. Content of the links is fair to excellent. The site loads quickly and is text-based.

G. Environmental Chemistry:

Environment writer: chemical backgrounder index http://www.nsc.org/ehc/ew/chemical.htm

This Web site is an index of so-called chemical backgrounders for more than 100 chemicals or groups of chemicals (i.e., aluminum and aluminum compounds) that are considered hazardous. Chemical backgrounders give the description, chemical and physical properties, health effects of industrial uses and releases, and US regulations for widely used chemicals likely to be of interest to journalists. The individual listings have been appearing regularly for some time in the Environment Writer, a publication of the Environmental Health Center, a division of the National Safety Council.

IPCS INCHEM http://www.inchem.org/

This Web site is sponsored by the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, whose home page resides at http://www.ccohs.ca/. The acronym IPCS INCHEM stands for International Programme on Chemical Safety. The site is also closely associated with the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Labour Organisation, and the World Health Organization, with links to their respective Web sites. The overall focus or purpose of the site is to provide "rapid access to information on chemicals commonly used throughout the world, which may also occur as contaminants in the environment and food", with emphasis on hazards. Two strong features of the site are the comprehensive list of its documents and a reasonably adequate search capability.

NIOSH pocket guide to chemical hazards: online version http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/npg.html

NIOSH's on-line version of its pocket guide offers a clear, well-organized home page with eight major topics; about NIOSH, databases, health and safety issues, training, and funding are some that this reviewer investigated. The home page has a separate search request. The cornerstone remains the 13 databases. For example, the database OSHA PELs (1988) is indexed by both CAS RN and chemical name. Another database of particular interest to health and safety researchers is NIOSHTIC-2, a bibliographical database, updated every two weeks, of occupational health and safety articles. The database eLCOSH stands for "electronic library of construction safety and health".

UNEP chemicals http://www.chem.unep.ch/

According to the notice on its home page, UNEP Chemicals "is the center for all chemicals-related activities of the UN Environment Programme...to make the world a safer place from toxic chemicals". These efforts are in the form of reports and studies designed to influence national and international legislation and thus personal, governmental, and corporate action. In order to be influential these reports must include the best available science and policy understanding.

H. Industrial Chemistry:

The Chemical industry home page http://www.neis.com/

This Web site consists of ten major headings: Chemical Industry Associations; Management Resources, including stock prices; Chemical and Process Engineering Resources; Chemical Sales Resources; Environmental Resources; Analytical Chemistry Resources; Chemical Companies' Websites; Miscellaneous Chemistry Resources; Search Engines, offering five powerful search engines; and Internet Cool Tools. The feature called "Chem Chat" provides a forum for anyone to ask questions or pose issues relevant to the chemical industry. Through "Environmental Resources", links are provided to the Web sites of EPA and other government organizations as well as private organizations specializing in environmental issues and management. "Analytical Chemistry Resources" offers a comprehensive source of analytical methods, books, publications, and references.

Communicating chemistry http://www.hw.ac.uk/cheWWW/commchem/

Communicating Chemistry presents a brief, easy-to-read summary of important issues to chemists in communicating their work. Topics covered include material on note taking, writing lab reports and professional papers, oral presentations, and information retrieval. All topics are covered only briefly, usually requiring only one or two screens of easily readable text. Some of the links may not be too useful, as they may not be readily available for free. This site is valuable in that it has well-defined bounds and will not lead the user down many confusing navigational paths.

Links for chemists http://www.liv.ac.uk/Chemistry/Links/intro.html

This site collects some 7,500 links to other chemistry sites on the Internet. A keyword search capability is provided. In the hierarchical organization of the site, some of the top-level categories include university chemistry departments, jobs, industrial companies, chemical publishing, chemical information, chemistry software, organizations, other link sites, and a slightly idiosyncratic collection of "topics". The other links include "Whatever Happened to that Chemistry URL??" which should be useful given the flux on the Internet.

Reactive reports: chemistry Webmagazine http://www.reactivereports.com/

Reactive Reports provides “the chemistry community with cutting edge reports of exciting developments in the world of the chemical sciences and related fields." Each article overviews a new development complete with links to the scientists or the original articles first introducing the news. The articles derive from such well-respected sources as Science, Nature, and Journal of the American Medical Association. There is also a link to an archive with past issues plus an option of receiving the latest issue by E-mail. A page of chemistry links includes Internet Chemistry Directories and Chemistry and Education.

I. Polymer Chemistry:

The Macrogalleria http://www.pslc.ws/macrog/index.htm

This site, developed by the University of Southern Mississippi which has one of the nation's leading polymer science departments, provides an excellent, broad-based introduction to polymers. The site is well designed, easily navigated, loads quickly, and has many internal links; the information is arranged well, with easy-to-read descriptions nontechnical readers can understand, but with sufficient technical content to be useful to undergraduates new to the area of polymers. The site is cleverly laid out like a five-story shopping mall, with each level dedicated to a different broad topic.

Polymers & liquid crystals http://plc.cwru.edu/

This Web site contains an innovative textbook‑based learning tool and a virtual laboratory on polymers and liquid crystals. The integration of the text, the hypertext glossary, laboratory experiment, and laboratory observation through movie clips is impressive.

PSI: polymer search on the Internet http://www.polymer-search.com/home/default.asp

Many of the helpful parts of the site require a subscription or product purchase. The free part is a specialized search engine dedicated to looking for material on the plastics industry quickly and effectively. Free searches are useful for looking for plastics by trade names, for finding MSDSs, and for finding data for a specific product. An advantage of PSI as a site is its close connection to RAPRA (Rubber and Plastics Research Association). The search engine is easy to use and allows full Boolean logic. The site contains many interesting facets, including a unit conversion page. The information found tends to be industry news, product releases, and product data sheets, although there is some technical information.

6. Chemical Software:

Chemistry, physics and electronics software http://www.chemistry-software.com/

This Web site is really a catalog with hot links to more than 200 other sites, mostly proprietary, covering the following areas (the approximate number of sites included in each is in parentheses): Software for Laboratory and Instrument Management, Including LIMS (Laboratory Information Management Systems) (20); General Chemistry Software and Tools (90); Biological and Biochemical Software (3); Education and Training Software (40); Molecular Modeling Software (70); Safety Including Safety Estimation and MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheets) (7); and Chemical Databases and Database Management (16). Each area leads to a number of software sites; title and description are included for each site. Each title is clickable so that users may go further and investigate the program itself. There are a few freeware sites and demonstrations for many others, usually for Windows machines only.

Chemistry software and information resources http://www.csir.org/

CSIR bills its Web site, which is still in the prototype stage, as "...an information resource for chemistry software, its development, and its use...". In what is both an asset and a weakness, that information does not reside on-site, but rather as links to sites around the world. The CSIR site has three resources: Chemistry Software Exchange, AskNPAC Chemistry Mailing List Archive, and Links to Other Chemistry Software Information.

7. Chemical Societies:

Latinamerican chemistry net http://latina.chem.cinvestav.mx/RLQ/welcome_eng.html

This is an interface to chemistry in Mexico and Central and South America, sponsored by the Organization of the American States, through the Mexican National Council for Science and Technology and the Mexican Academy of Science. The home page is available in Spanish and English, but the links beyond that require Spanish or Portuguese. The site is under construction, but it has lists and links to most of the chemistry organizations of the area and to the university sites.