This guide is based on the third edition of The ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information (2006) and the ACS Style Quick Guide in the ACS Guide to Scholarly Communication. For a more thorough discussion of citation formats, please refer to Chapter 14: References in The ACS Style Guide.
Journal Articles | Books | Encyclopedia or Handbook Articles | Online Encyclopedias, Handbooks, and Dictionaries | Newspapers | Websites
Basic Format:
Author, A. A.; Author, B. B.; Author, C. C. Title of Article. Journal Abbreviation (italics) Year (boldface), Volume (italics) (Issue Number), Page numbers or Article number (if online only). DOI: 10.xxxx/etc.
Examples:
Kuchenreuther, J. M.; Britt, R. D.; Swartz, J. R. New Insights into [FeFe] Hydrogenase Activation and Maturase Function. PLoS One 2012, 7 (9), e45850. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0045850
Slunt, K. M.; Giancarlo, L. C. Student-Centered Learning: A Comparison of Two Different Methods of Instruction. J. Chem. Educ. 2004, 81 (7), 985-988. DOI: 10.1021/ed081p985
Takahaski, T. The Fate of Industrial Carbon Dioxide. Science 2004, 305 (5682), 352-353. DOI: 10.1126/science.1100602
The standard list of journal abbreviations is available in the Chemical Abstracts Service Source Index (CASSI).
Basic Format:
Author, A. A.; Author, B. B. Book Title (italics), Edition (if any); Publisher: Place of Publication (only required for smaller or specialized publishers), Year. DOI or aggregator URL (for ebook).
Examples:
Dill, K. A.; Bromberg, S. Molecular Driving Forces: Statistical Thermodynamics in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Nanoscience, 2nd ed.; Garland Science: New York, 2011.
Engel, R; Cohen, J. I. Synthesis of Carbon-Phosphorus Bonds: New Methods of Exploration; CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL, 2004.
Zumdahl, S. S. Chemical Principles, 4th ed.; Houghton Mifflin: Boston, MA, 2002.
Authored Chapters in Books with Editor(s)
Basic Format:
Author, A. A.; Author, B. B. Chapter Title. In Book Title (italics); Editor, A. A., Editor, B. B., Eds.; Series Title (if any), Volume number (if any); Publisher: Place of Publication (only required for smaller or specialized publishers), Year; Volume number (if any), Page numbers (pp __-__). DOI or aggregator URL (for ebook).
Examples:
Downs, G. M.; Barnard, J. M. Clustering Methods and Their Uses in Computational Chemistry. In Reviews in Computational Chemistry, Vol. 18; Lipkowitz, K. B., Boyd, D. B., Eds.; Wiley, 2002, pp 1-40.
Lenhart, J. L.; Fischer, D. A.; Sambasivan, S.; Lin, E. K.; Soles, M. A. Utilizing Near Edge X-ray Absorption Fine Structure to Probe Interfacial Issues in Photolithography. In Polymers for Microelectronics and Nanoelectronics; Lin, Q., Pearson, R. A., Hedrick, J. C., Eds.; ACS Symposium Series, Vol. 874; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2004; pp 98-117.
Books with Editor(s), and Entire Book is Referenced
Basic Format:
Book Title (italics); Editor, A. A., Editor, B. B., Eds.; Series Information (if any, including series number); Publisher: Place of Publication, Year. DOI or aggregator URL (for ebook).
Example:
Polymers for Microelectronics and Nanoelectronics; Lin, Q., Pearson, R. A., Hedrick, J. C., Eds.; ACS Symposium Series, Vol. 874; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2004.
Metal Organic Framework (MOFs): Catalytic Degradation of Pollutants; Kumar, P., Kumar, N., Aneja, D. K., Eds.; Springer, 2024. DOI: 10.1007/978-981-97-5971-2
Encyclopedia or Handbook Articles (in print)
Basic Format:
Article Title. In Encyclopedia Name (italics), Edition number; Publisher: Place of Publication (optional), Year; Volume Number, Page numbers and/or other identifiers.
Example:
Psychopharmacological Agents. In Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, 4th ed.; Wiley, 1996; Vol. 20, pp 455-457.
Ioversol. In The Merck Index: An Encyclopedia of Chemicals, Drugs, and Biologicals, 14th ed.; O’Neil, M. J., Heckelman, P. E., Koch, C. B., Roman, K. J., Eds.; Merck & Co.: Whitehouse Station, NJ, 2006; entry 5066. (CAS RN: 87771-40-2).
Online Encyclopedias, Handbooks and Dictionaries
Basic Format:
Author, A. A.; Author, B. B. (if available) Article, Section or Table Title. In Encyclopedia or Handbook or Dictionary Title (italics), edition; Publisher, Posted Online Posting Date (if available). DOI or URL (accessed YYYY-MM-DD). Other identifiers. (Do not include session-specific URLs for subscription sites).
Examples:
Composition and Properties of Common Oils and Fats. In CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 105th ed.; Rumble, J. R., Ed.; CRC Press, 2023. https://hbcp.chemnetbase.com/documents/07_13/07_13_0001.xhtml?dswid=-7713 (accessed 2025-03-03).
Araki K.; Ozeki T. Amino Acids. In Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, 4th ed.; Wiley, July 18 2003. DOI: 10.1002/0471238961.1921182201180111.a01.pub2/full (accessed 2025-03-03).
Cyclopentane. In Combined Chemical Dictionary, ver. 28.2. CRC Press, 2024. http://ccd.chemnetbase.com/ (accessed 2025-03-03). (CAS RN: 287-92-3).
Basic Format:
Author, A. A.; Author, B. B. Article Title. Newspaper Title (italics), Complete Date, Page numbers.
Examples:
Jones, M. Panel Urges NASA to Save Hubble Space Telescope. New York Times, July 16, 2004, p A1.
Borman, S. Protein Sequencing for the Masses. Chem. Eng. News, 82 (28), 22-23.
Basic Format:
Author, A. A. (if any). Title of webpage. Title of website, date of publication/last updated (if available). URL (accessed YYYY-MM-DD), other identifying information. (Do not include session-specific URLs for subscription sites).
Example:
Scalfani, V. Computing InChIs. IUPAC FAIR Chemistry Cookbook, February 14, 2024. https://w3id.org/ifcc/IFCC012 (accessed 2025-03-03).
This guide:
ACS Citation Style Guide. UC Berkeley Library, updated March 3, 2025. http://guides.lib.berkeley.edu/acs-style (accessed YYYY-MM-DD).
