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Purdue Resources

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Organizing your lab notebook
Read tips for best practices in maintaining a proper and professional lab notebook.
Parts of a lab report
A good lab report has 7 sections. Read about them here.
Writing your lab report
How is writing a lab report different than writing a term paper? What are some characteristics of a good lab report? Find tips and guidance here.
Graphs/Tables
What are common types of graphs and tables? How do I create professional looking graphs/tables? What do I consider when I am interpreting graphs/tables from others?
Common Calculations
Review common calculations you will have to make in your labs and lab reports, such as molarity, percent composition, stoichiometry, limiting reagent, and more.
Citing your sources
Why should I cite my sources? What style should I use? Examples? Answers are here.
Finding chemical properties
Need to find a boiling point or spectra? Start here.
Lab techniques, instrumentation, and protocols
How does an NMR instrument work? What is the theory behind GC/MS? Go here to find more information about the instruments and techniques you use in your labs.
Chemical safety
Lab Safety Tutorial, general safety guidelines, MSDS, chemical incompatibilities...