Energy Citations Database
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About ECD

The Energy Citations Database (1943 – Present) was developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) to improve access to Departmental and predecessor agency scientific and technical information (STI).

The Energy Citations Database (ECD) contains bibliographic citations for energy and energy related STI from the Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessor agencies, the Energy Research & Development Administration (ERDA) and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). The Database provides access to electronic documents, primarily from 1943 forward, with continued growth through regular updates.

Features of ECD include:
  • bibliographic citations for scientific and technical information dating from 1943 to the present;
  • basic search capability;
  • fielded search capability;
  • capability to search on full text, bibliographic citation, title, creator/author, subject, identifier numbers, publication date, system entry date, resource/document type, research organization, sponsoring organization, and/or combinations thereof;
  • capability to sort search results by relevance, publication date, system entry date, resource/document type, title, research organization, sponsoring organization, or the unique OSTI Identifier;
  • ability to acquire a count of search results with a link to the search results;
  • ability to receive weekly Alerts in topics of interest;
  • information about Technical Requirements; and
  • information about acquiring a non-electronic document, which can be found on the Document Availability page.

ECD includes bibliographic citations of literature in disciplines of interest to DOE such as chemistry, physics, materials, environmental science, geology, engineering, mathematics, climatology, oceanography, and computer science. It includes citations to report literature, conference papers, journal articles, books, dissertations, and patents.

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DOE and Predecessor Agency Information


AEC In 1942, the Manhattan Project was established by the United States Army to conduct atomic research with the goal of ending World War II. This research was performed in a manner that helped to cement the ongoing bond between basic scientific research and national security. After the war, the authority to continue this research was transferred from the Army to the United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) through the Atomic Energy Act of 1946. This Act was signed into law by President Harry S Truman on August 1, 1946, and entrusted the AEC with the government monopoly in the field of atomic research and development.1
ERDA The Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 abolished the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and established the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA). ERDA was created to achieve two goals:
  • to focus the Federal Government’s energy research and development activities within a unified agency whose major function would be to promote the speedy development of various energy technologies; and
  • to separate nuclear licensing and regulatory functions from the development and production of nuclear power and weapons.1
DOE To achieve a major Federal energy reorganization, the Department of Energy (DOE) was activated on October 1, 1977. DOE became the twelfth cabinet level department in the Federal Government and brought together for the first time most of the government`s energy programs and defense responsibilities that included the design, construction, and testing of nuclear weapons. Uniting seemingly disparate organizations and programs reflected a common commitment to performing first rate science and technology. The Department of Energy sought–and continues to seek–to be one of the Nation’s premier science and technology organizations.2
OSTI Since the late 1940s, the Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) and its predecessor organizations have been responsible for the management of scientific and technical information (STI) for the Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessor agencies, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA). Growth and development of STI management has incorporated planning, developing, maintaining, and administering all services and facilities required to accomplish the dissemination of STI for the encouragement of scientific progress.

Edited excerpts from:
1 The Manhattan Project: Making the Atomic Bomb 1999 edition.; F.G. Gosling, January 1, 1999
2 Department of Energy 1977–1994: A Summary History; T.R. Fehner and J.M. Holl; November 1, 1994