If this is your first time using a scientific research article for your work, you may not know quite where to begin. Here are some tips on how to read one.

There are large quantities of published literature in chemistry. Chemists rarely read an entire article all at once, from start to finish. Instead, they take a step-by-step approach in order to make more efficient use of their time.

1. Read the abstract. Since the abstract is a brief summary of the whole article, it should give you a good overview of what the paper is about and what the authors' research accomplished. If the content of the paper does not seem to meet your expectations and will not help you answer your questions, you may want to choose another article.
2. Skim the article. Look at the section headings and any figures, schemes, or tables, taking time to read the captions.
3. Read the text. If the article is relevant to your work or something is unclear after reading the abstract and skimming the article, go back and carefully read the entire article, section by section. Write down any questions you have about the article while you're reading it; that way, you can see if the authors answer your questions later in the article.

Note: Be sure to look up any words that you don't understand using a science or chemistry dictionary. If you still don't understand some concepts in the article, even after reading it several times, ask your instructor for help.