Library: Chemistry: ACS Citations

Why Cite?

Citation Needed When you use information (data, images, ideas, quotations, etc.) in your papers, presentations, videos, etc., you need to reference the original source. In other words, provide details about where the information came from:

+ To give credit where it's due.

+ To help your audience find the same sources (which could help their research).

+ To show there is support to back up the ideas you present.

+ To establish your authority and credibility. Citing makes you look smart and trustworthy because you show your audience that you did your research and that got information from reliable sources.

+To avoid plagiarism.

Image courtesy of xkcd

ACS Style

Use the American Chemical Society (ACS) style for your chemistry citations.

Citations Have Two Parts.

In-Text Citation: Always refer to your source at the point at which you use an idea, fact, or wording that isn’t your own. ACS allows three styles of in-text citation.

Superscript numbers. ¹
Italic numbers (2).
Parenthetical with author name and year (Severns, 2022).

Bibliographic Citation: This is the complete citation with all the details about the source. It goes into a list at the back of your paper, with the citations in order by number or (if using parenthetical in-text citations), authorʻs name.

The ACS Style Guide, 3rd ed. by Lorrin R. Garson and Anne M. Coghill (Editors)
Call Number: REF QD8.5 .A25 2006
ISBN: 9780841239999
How to write, review, submit, and edit scholarly and scientific manuscripts.
Note: For current information on citing sources, consult the ACS Quick Style Guide.

ACS Quick Style Guide
This excerpt from the ACS Style Guide gives example bibliographic citations for journal articles, books, theses, websites, news sources, and more.
Citing Your Sources: ACS
This describes how to format your reference list, your in-text citations, and gives example citations for a variety of source types. From Williams College Libraries.
MyBib ACS Citation Generator
Input a DOI, URL, or ISBN to generate a bibliographic citation. Check generated citations for accuracy before including them in your work.

Sample Citations

Book

Field, S. Culinary Reactions: The Everyday Chemistry of Cooking; Chicago Review Press: Chicago, IL, 2012.

In-Text citation: (Field, 2012)

Book Chapter

Company, M.; Karsa, D. R. Vehicle Cleaning. In Handbook for Cleaning/Decontamination of Surfaces; Elsevier, 2007, pp. 439-458. DOI: 10.1016/B978-044451664-0/50013-9.

Parenthetical In-Text Citation: (Company and Karsa, 2007)

Journal Article

Oyedele, A. O.; Gbolade, A. A.; Sosan, M. B.; Adewoyin, F. B.; Soyelu, O. L.; Orafidiya, O. O. Formulation of an Effective Mosquito-Repellent Topical Product from Lemongrass Oil. Phytomedicine 2002, 9 (3), 259–262. https://doi.org/10.1078/0944-7113-00120.

Parenthetical In-Text Citation: (Oyedele et al., 2007)

Website

Mundy, B. A New Simple Process Extracts Valuable Compounds From Seawater. SciTechDaily, December 14, 2022. https://scitechdaily.com/a-new-simple-process-extracts-valuable-compounds-from-seawater (accessed 2020-02-21).

Parenthetical In-Text Citation: (Mundy, 2022)