IUPAC logo

The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) (Pronounced as "eye-you-pack") is an international non-governmental organization established in 1919 devoted to the advancement of chemistry. It has as its members national chemistry societies. It is most well known as the recognized authority in developing standards for the naming of the chemical elements and their compounds, through its Interdivisional Committee on Nomenclature and Symbols (IUPAC nomenclature). It is a member of the International Council for Science (ICSU). This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... A non-governmental organization (NGO) is a non-profit group or association that acts outside of institutionalized political structures and pursues matters of interest to its members by lobbying, persuasion, or direct action. ... 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Chemistry (from Greek χημεία khemeia meaning alchemy, see below for possible origins of this word) is the science of matter at the atomic to molecular scale, dealing primarily with collections of atoms (such as molecules, crystals, and metals). ... IUPAC nomenclature is a system of naming chemical compounds and of describing the science of chemistry in general. ... The International Council for Science (ICSU), formerly called the International Council of Scientific Unions, was founded in 1931 as an international non-governmental organization devoted to international co-operation in the advancement of science. ...

In addition to nomenclature guidelines, the IUPAC sets standards for international spelling in the event of a dispute; for example, it ruled that British aluminium is preferable to the American aluminum and American sulfur is preferable to the British sulphur. General Name, Symbol, Number aluminium, Al, 13 Chemical series poor metals Group, Period, Block 13, 3, p Appearance silvery Atomic mass 26. ... General Name, Symbol, Number sulfur, S, 16 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 16, 3, p Appearance lemon yellow Atomic mass 32. ...

Many IUPAC publications are available over the Internet. For example, the Green Book ("Quantities, Units and Symbols in Physical Chemistry, 2nd edition, 1993") can be downloaded in its entirety from http://www.iupac.org/publications/books/gbook/green_book_2ed.pdf. The 2005 version (a work-in-progress) can also be downloaded.

An important IUPAC supplement ("Recommendations for nomenclature and tables in biochemical thermodynamics, 1994") is available at http://www.chem.qmul.ac.uk/iubmb/thermod/.

As the introduction to the proposed 3rd edition points out, the failure to use standardized units can result in disastrous consequences, illustrated by the loss of NASA's Mars Climate Orbiter. Mars Climate Orbiter during tests The Mars Climate Orbiter (formerly the Mars Surveyor 98 Orbiter) was one of two spacecraft in the Mars Surveyor 98 program, the other being the Mars Polar Lander (formerly the Mars Surveyor 98 Lander). ...

See also

• IUPAC nomenclature
• Chemical element
• Element naming controversy
• Periodic table group
• International Chemical Identifier (InChI)
• Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM)
• National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

IUPAC nomenclature is a system of naming chemical compounds and of describing the science of chemistry in general. ... The periodic table of the chemical elements A chemical element, often called simply an element, is a substance that cannot be decomposed or transformed into other chemical substances by ordinary chemical processes. ... The names for the chemical elements 104 to 108 have been the subject of a major controversy starting in the 1960s which was only finally resolved in 1997. ... A periodic table group is a vertical column in the periodic table of the chemical elements. ... The IUPAC International Chemical Identifier (InChI), developed by IUPAC and NIST, is a digital equivalent of the IUPAC name for any particular covalent compound. ... The Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements or IRMM, located in Geel, Belgium, is one of the seven institutes of the Joint Research Centre (JRC), a Directorate-General of the European Commission (EC). ... The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST, formerly known as The National Bureau of Standards) is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce’s Technology Administration. ...

External links

• Official website
• ACD/ChemSKetch Freeware allowing generation of IUPAC Names (free version is limited to small structures)

This international organization-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.