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CHEM: Chemical Literature

ACS Style & Format

During the CHEM 3202 course you will follow the style and format of the American Chemical Society (ACS) as used in the Journal of Chemical Education. This page provides information on and links to the ACS guidelines on paper style and format. 

The ACS Style was developed by the American Chemical Society and the style is most commonly used in the field of Chemistry. The ACS Style used both numbered and author-date in-text citation format. For the following examples, the article Assessment of Scientific Practice Proficiency and Content Understanding Following an Inquiry-Based Laboratory Course by Kathryn Hosbein and Joi Walker will be used as the refenced article. 

In-text Citations

References to another source made in the text can be cited in one of three ways:

  • By superscript numbers:
    • 78% of student responses were proficient.2
    • Hosbein and Walker2 observed that roughly 50% of students...
  • By numbers in parentheses:
    • 78% of student responses were proficient. (2).
    • Hosbein and Walker (2) observed that roughly 50% of students...
  • By author name and year of publication in parentheses (author-date system):
    • 78% of student responses were proficient (Hosbein and Walker, 2022).

When it comes to the use of author names in text:

  • Two authors: provide the surname of both authors, separated by the word "and"
    • Hosbein and Walker (2) reported that...
  • More than two authors: provide the surname of the first author listed, and then "et al."
    • Hosbein et al. (3) described the importance of...

Note: This is different from the list of works cited, where the first 10 author names should be provided, separated by semicolons, and then followed by “et al.”

Reference List Citations

References cited in the body of the text should have a corresponding entry in the document’s reference list, which is placed at the end of the document.

1. (citation of the first thing you referenced in text)

2. Hosbein, K.; Walker, Joi. Assessment of Scientific Practice Proficiency and Content Understanding Following an Inquiry-Based Laboratory Course. J. Chem. Educ. 2022, 99 (12), 3833–3841; DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.2c00578 

3. (citation of the third thing you referenced in text)