Chemical Abrstract

Chemical Abstracts is the most comprehensive scientific abstracting service in English. It provides a complete bibliographic reference to the original publication and a non-critical summary of its content. Over 15,000 scientific and engineering journals, patents from 26 countries, conference proceedings, reports and monographs are monitored. Over 55% of this material is in English, with the remainder in any of 66 other languages. Some familiarity with chemistry and its terminology is necessary for the efficient use of this tool. Once the construction of the indexes is understood, there should be little difficulty in the use of CA. However, hands-on experience is the only way a full understanding can be achieved. Abstracts are arranged in 80 sections grouped under five broad headings and are published weekly. From 1907 - 1996 (v.1-125), biochemistry and organic chemistry are covered in one week; macromolecular chemistry, applied chemistry and chemical engineering, and physical and analytical chemistry in the alternate week. From 1997 – present, all fields are covered in each issue

How to Access: 

Online: 1907 to present in SciFinder. Indexing prior to 1957 may be incomplete (bibliographic information and abstracts only). Please note that you must create an account to use SciFinder.

Print: 1907 to 2002.

Indexes Related to Time Period Covered Indexes to CA are to be found in each weekly issue. However, more efficient access can be obtained through use of the volume indexes (each volume comprising a half-year period), or the collective indexes (comprising a 10- or 5-year period). 
Volume and Collective Indexes

  Author Index: Lists personal and corporate authors, patentees, and assignees in alphabetical order with titles of articles of patent specifications and CA abstract numbers. 

 Patent Index: Relates new patent numbers, grouped by country in ascending numerical order, with their corresponding CA abstract numbers. If the same patent has been taken in more than one country, a cross-reference is provided. 

 Formula Index: Relates the molecular formulas for chemical substances with the CA chemical substance index names, CAS registry numbers and corresponding CA abstract numbers. Formulas are arranged according to the Hill system: first C's, then H's, followed by other elements in alphabetical order. References to abstracts do not include descriptions of the documents' content. However, this index is most useful in identifying the CA chemical substance name, which should then be used to access the Chemical Substance Index. 

 General Subject Index: Relates index entries which do not refer to specific chemical substances to the corresponding CA abstracts. These entries include concepts, general classes of chemical substances, applications, uses, properties, reactions, and processes. Guidance to vocabulary and usage is provided by the Index Guide. Prior to 1971 this index included chemical substance names as well. 

 Chemical Substance Index: Relates the CA index name of chemical substances (and their CAS registry numbers) to CA abstract numbers for documents in which the substances are mentioned. For each reference a brief description of the document's content is included. Proper CA names and an explanation of the nomenclature system can be found in the Index Guide. Prior to 1971 chemical substance names are found in the General Subject Index. 

 Index Of Ring Systems: Ring composition, ring size and number of rings are listed, allowing one to determine the systematic CA name.

Reference

http://www.umsl.edu/services/library/research-help/research-guides/ChemicalAbstracts.pdf