Organic Chemistry Helps: Home

SciFinder is a great way to find chemical properties, including melting points and boiling points.

1. Type the name of the substance into SciFinder
2. Choose your compound from the result list
3. Select “Experimental properties.” Be aware that “Predicted Properties” are not acceptable for assignments in Organic Chemistry at TCU.
4. Choose the type of property. For example, for melting points, choose “Thermal.”
5. Find the melting point in the table.

Look at the next box on this guide to get help in finding a journal article that reports the melting point.

There are other ways to find chemical properties besides SciFinder. Here are some other databases that have melting points:

One you have found a melting point within SciFinder, you will also need to find the article that contains the melting point. Follow these additional steps.

1. In the table of melting points in SciFinder, look to the right for the number in parentheses. Click on the number.
2. In the list of references, click on the one that corresponds to the number.
3. On the next screen, you will see a summary of the article. Click on “Full Text” and then “Via TCU Library.”

Find the article and look at the PDF. The melting point will be in the article. On occasion, an article will have multiple PDFs, some of which may be labeled “Supplemental data.” Check all the PDFs for the melting point.

One good way is to use SciFinder.

1. Type the name of the substance into SciFinder.
2. Choose your compound from the result list.
3. Select “Experimental Spectra.” Be aware that “Predicted Spectra” are not acceptable for assignments in Organic Chemistry at TCU.
4. Choose the type of spectra. For example, 1HNMR or IR.
5. In the list of spectra, look to the right hand side for the journal articles or other sources that report the spectra.

Here are some other resources that have spectra:

1. Use a table of derivatives. Books such as The Systematic Identification of Organic Compounds by Shriner, or CRC Handbook of Tables for Organic Compound Identification by Rappoport have lists of derivatives for significant organic compounds. Links below.
2. Find the table that corresponds to the class of your compound. For example, there will be a table of keytones, another for amides.
3. Each table is ordered by melting (or boiling point) of the compound. Find the compounds corresponding to your melting point (or boiling point).
4. Look to the right to see derivatives and their melting points.

1. In SciFinder, type in the name of the known compound.
2. Choose your compound in the result list.
3. Look at the compound’s structure drawing. Draw it on a piece of paper.
4. Using the textbook The Systematic Identification of Organic Compounds by Shriner, look through Chapter 10. It will show you how to modify your drawing in order to draw the derivative.
5. Using SciFinder, click on Draw and then draw the derivative structure. Click OK, then “Search.”
6. Find your substance in the result list. This is a good way to find the melting point of the derivative, also.