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CHEE 360: Chemical Engineering Lab - Literature Search

Faculty: Dr. Evans. Help with the literature search activity in Chemistry Engineering Lab.

Checking Vocabulary

Perry's will have more of a dictionary feel, with very brief definitions. Ullmann's opens in new window and Kirk-Othmer opens in new window encyclopedias both have review articles on chemical engineering topics. Between these three respected, scholarly resources you should be able to define any chemical engineering terminology you come across.

Reviewing References

Some patents or articles may have over 50 references, so you will have to pick and choose which references to look up. Consider....

Library links example begins. Settings. Search results link. Languages link. Library links link highlighted. Account link. Button link. Show library access links for (choose up to five libraries): textbox with akron typed in it. Search button. e.g. harvard. Checkbox checked. The University of Akron Libraries - Full Text Finder @ Uakron. Checkbox checked. OhioLINK - Find it with OhioLINK. Online access to library subscriptions is usually restricted to patrons of that library. You may need to login with your library password, use a campus computer, or configure your browser to use a library proxy. Please visit your library's website or ask a local librarian for assistance. Save button. Cancel button. To retain settings, you must turn on cookies. Library links example ends.
  • Do we have the reference in full-text? – A week might not be long enough for an Interlibrary Loan request to be filled. In this case, it is best to focus on our electronic journals. Find them in the Publication Finder. opens new window
  • Is the reference important? – some references are for background and some are for methods. You want to look at references that offer alternate hypotheses or are critically important to the author's argument.

Finding the references

The easiest way to find a reference is to copy and paste the full title with quotation marks, or the digital object identifies (DOI) into Google Scholar. opens new window

If you haven't already, be sure to add Full Text Finder @ Uakron to your library links under settings in Google Scholar. Type Akron into the textbox, then select the checkbox beside Full Text Finder.

You can use databases to try to find articles as well. This is especially helpful when you don't know all of the publication information, such as volume, issues, and year.

Evaluating Figures

Some general considerations about figures -

  •    Does the scale of chart axes make sense given the data?
  •    Are all units clearly marked? Is it easy to tell what is being presented?
  •    For photos, is the feature the author refers to easily visible? Does it clearly support the author's argument?
  •    Are chart axes labeled? Does the figure have a meaningful legend?
  •    For microscopic photos, is there a scale bar present? How was it determined?

The links below may also be helpful.