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Research Guides

Chemistry

A guide to resources and tools for chemistry research. For information on the A.D. Allen Chemistry Library spaces and services, please visit https://chemistry.library.utoronto.ca.

Why cite?

Why do researchers cite the sources of information they use? Reproducibility. 

Reproducibility is a key foundation to making sure the science is valid. If you or others cannot redo the experiment and get the same results then it might be a sign that there is an error along the way.  If you cite all the sources used, it is easier to find out where things might have gone wrong.

This link highlights some reasons to cite: Why Cite?

In chemistry, it is important to cite where your found the properties and data you used in your reaction or calculations. Also it is necessary to cite the papers or books used to outline your discussion or conclusions.  These all show how you are positioning the results within the larger field of chemistry and validating your data.

Links to more info on citation management and citation guides for chemistry

 

Citation Styles

There are different citation styles across disciplines and even within disciplines.  

Here are a number of citation styles for the book "The ACS style guide : effective communication of scientific information" - you can see the variation in format for the authors, positioning and punctuation used.

APA (6th ed.)

  • Coghill, A. M., Garson, L. R., & American Chemical Society. (2006). The ACS style guide: Effective communication of scientific information. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society.

Chicago (Author-Date, 15th ed.)

  • Coghill, Anne M., and Lorrin R. Garson. 2006. The ACS style guide: effective communication of scientific information. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society.

Harvard (18th ed.)

  • COGHILL, A. M., & GARSON, L. R. (2006). The ACS style guide: effective communication of scientific information. Washington, DC, American Chemical Society.

MLA (7th ed.)

  • Coghill, Anne M, and Lorrin R. Garson. The Acs Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 2006. Print.

Turabian (6th ed.)

  • Coghill, Anne M., and Lorrin R. Garson. The ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 2006.
  • ACS style (3rd ed.)
  • Coghill, A. M.; L. R. Garson. The ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information. 3rd ed.; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2006.
The styles are dictated by Style Guides - your syllabus should state what guide should be followed. For most undergraduate chemistry courses the department uses the ACS Style Guide.
When you are citing a journal article the ACS guide states that you can either include or exclude the article title. But note that they use the abbreviated journal title not the full title.

Journal article with article title:

Klingler, J. Influence of Pretreatment on Sodium Powder. Chem. Mater. 2005, 17, 2755–2768.

without article title:

Klingler, J. Chem. Mater. 2005, 17, 2755–2768.