Library

Walk-in access to the Main Library and Computer Room is available to Royal Society of Chemistry Members during the times stated below:

Library calendar

In addition to access to the collections we provide the following:

Discover what the Library collections have to offer or start using the Library catalogue now to browse the collections or find a particular item.

Our collections consist of the virtual (accessible via our Virtual Library) and the physical. The physical collections are comprised of loanable books, journals and reference items. The Historical Collection is available both physically, in Burlington House, and online, through our Historical Collection.

The services provided by the Library are mostly only for members of the Royal Society of Chemistry but if you are not a member, we may still be able to assist so please ask.

As well as providing access to the collections (physically and virtually), we can undertake a range of enquiries.

Historical Enquiries

One of our most widely accessible enquiry services is the historical enquiry service.

As more people are keen to research their family history, they sometimes come across information to suggest that an ancestor was a past member of the Chemical Society or Institute of Chemistry; if this proves to be true, we can often provide some information.

Not limited to genealogy, we can also help with a wide range of biographical enquiries of scientists and more general history of the chemical sciences.

The Royal Society of Chemistry's Library Catalogue can be used to search for information on individual chemists and other scientists.

Technical Enquiries

Whilst unable to provide a detailed or technical search for information, we have many resources available to assist you. The main resources can be found in the Virtual Library, or you could search the Library catalogue or the RSC Publishing Platform.

We would also recommend looking through the Directory of Consultants to locate someone with the expertise to help you.

The Digital Collection (formerly, the Virtual Library) provides members with free access to a range of chemical resources from several different publishers.

To access

1. Click the 'Digital Collection sign-in' button below
2. Enter your Membership ID and Password and click 'Log In'
3. Scroll down the page a little and click the 'Insight and Information' button (second from the left)
4. Click 'Find out more' in the Digital Collection tab

Problems logging in?

• Access via the sign-in button only
• Enter your username as your 6 digit RSC number.  If you have forgotten your ID or password, you can reset them on the Members' area sign-in page
• Clear the cookies from your browsers’ cache
• Try using a different browser
• ScienceDirect requires a separate account that you can request from the Library (accounts expire at the end of each year)

EBSCO eBooks

Access to over 100 titles on the chemical sciences, including many on the history of chemistry, and more than 3,000 general interest titles.

Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology

Features over 1,300 regularly updated articles on chemical substances: their properties, manufacturing, and uses.

Also includes information on industrial processes and unit operations in chemical engineering, as well as fundamentals and scientific subjects related to the field.  Environmental and health issues concerning chemical technology are also addressed.

Knovel eBooks and Databases

Engineering data resource including eBooks & Databases on a range of related topics.  Other research tools include:

• Material property search
• Interactive equations
• Periodic Table
• Engineering unit converter

Please Note: Our subscription to this service will be discontinued at the end of 2024.

ScienceDirect eJournals and eBooks

Over 300 eBooks and 18 journal archives (c. 1995 to 2016).  Journal titles include Analytica Chimica Acta, Journal of Chromatography A and Tetrahedron Letters.

Springer eJournals and eBooks

Access to over 400 eBooks and the journal archives of over 100 titles, e.g. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry; Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology; Physical and Engineering Sciences in Medicine.

Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry

Complete coverage of the science and technology in all areas of industrial chemistry containing over 1,000 major articles by some 3,000 authors.

The Presidents of the Chemical Society and the Royal Society of Chemistry (1841-2024)

This booklet contains profiles on every president of the Chemical Society and the Royal Society of Chemistry since 1841.

Find out about some of their many professional achievements as well as other interesting facts about them; which president played in the second ever FA Cup Final? Who was the inspiration for the White Knight in ‘Alice Through the Looking Glass’? Who are the presidents that have craters on the Moon named after them?

The Story of Burlington House

For a century and a half, the London premises of the Society have been within Burlington House in Piccadilly. Prior to it being the home of six learned societies, Burlington House was a private residence; this booklet charts the history of the building from 1664 to present day.

Pro Patria: Remembering the First World War

To commemorate the centenary of the First World War (1914-1919), this booklet profiles each of the 82 members of the Chemical Society and the Institute of Chemistry who died on active duty and who are named on the two war memorials within Burlington House. Additionally, there are sections on some of those members who survived the conflict, and the role of women chemists.

The Historical Collection

The Library cares for an extensive collection of items on the chemical sciences, part of which is the Historical Collection.  This booklet describes each of the component parts of that collection and showcases some of the more notable and unique items within it.