Quick Recommendations for Finding Technical Reports
Some technical reports are cataloged like books and can be found through a library's catalog, while others are available in specialized databases or freely accessible online. Below are lists of databases that can help you locate a technical report.
To start, gather as much information about the report as possible, such as the full title and publication details.
Check the report’s title and find the report number in the National Technical Reports Library (NTRL).
Use search tools like Google Scholar, HathiTrust, or WorldCat to confirm the citation's accuracy and see if the report was published in a journal, conference proceeding, or under a different report number.
If you’re having difficulty finding the report at UTA, and it’s not available through our resources, you can request it via interlibrary loan, and we’ll obtain it from another library. For any further assistance, feel free to contact the engineering librarian!
Index of all publications of the American Society of Civil Engineers: journal articles, proceedings, standards, technical notes, etc. Journal papers with abstracts go back to 1970. Non-abstract journal records go back to 1958. The book records are complete dating back to the early 1900s. Engineering subject areas include: Aerospace Engineering; Architectural Engineering; Bridges; Cold Regions; Computer Practices; Construction; Earthquake Engineering; Education; Engineering Mechanics; Environmental Engineering; Forensic Engineering; Geotechnical Engineering; Geomechanics; Highways; Hydrology; Hydraulics; Irrigation and Drainage; Management; Materials Engineering; Structural Engineering; Transportation; Urban Planning; Water Resources; Waterway, Port, Coastal and Ocean Engineering. Full text is available for journals and proceedings only, same coverage as ASCE Research Library.
ASCE Research Library is a comprehensive online tool that provides full-text access to all journals and conference proceedings published by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). It is considered to be one of the premier sources of information on all technical areas of civil engineering, including: architectural engineering, coastal engineering, construction engineering, environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, structural engineering, transportation engineering, and water resource engineering. Updated regularly.
SpringerLink is the online journal and e-book service of the science publisher Springer, incorporating the former KluwerOnline. Containing over 2,000 journals and hundreds of e-books (usually electronic versions of paper titles UTA Libraries own), SpringerLink is divided into Online Libraries of architecture and design, behavioral science, biomedical and life sciences, business and economics, chemistry and materials science, computer science, earth and environmental science, engineering, humanities, social sciences, law, mathematics and statistics, medicine, physics and astronomy, professional and applied computing.
Compendex (formerly Engineering Index) is the broadest and most complete engineering literature index in the world, with over 20 million records from 77 countries across 190 engineering disciplines. Inspec, created by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), is one of the world's most definitive bibliographic indexes, containing over 15 million records in the areas of physics, electrical engineering and electronics, computers and control, mechanical, production engineering and information technology. Engineering Village allows you to search both of these exhaustive databases simultaneously.
Biological Abstracts is one of the foremost indexes on life science journal literature. The database indexes over 4,000 international journals and contains over 14 million archival records from as far back as 1926, with more than 370,000 citations added each year related to vital biological and medical research findings, clinical studies, and discoveries of new organisms. Subjects covered includes: agriculture, anatomy, bacteriology, behavioral sciences, biomedicine, bioengineering, biotechnology, botany, ecology, cell biology, clinical medicine, genetics, immunology, microbiology, nutrition, parasitology, pathology, pharmacology, physiology, radiation and systematic biology, toxicology, virology, and zoology. Updated regularly.
The ASTM Standards and Engineering Digital Library is a vast full-text collection of industry-leading standards and technical engineering information published by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). The collection includes journals, special technical publications, manuals, books, data series, proceedings, bulletins, and standards. ASTM standards, which include test methods, specifications, accepted practices, and accepted terminology, are used around the world to improve product quality, enhance safety, facilitate market access and trade, and build consumer confidence. The Library covers a broad range of engineering disciplines, including aerospace, biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, civil engineering, environmental engineering, geological engineering, health and safety engineering, industrial engineering, materials science engineering, mechanical engineering, nuclear engineering, petroleum engineering, soil science and irrigation engineering, and solar engineering. Updated regularly.
Search and browse publications from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET, successor to the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE)). IEEE Xplore contains all of the IEEE and IET publications: Journals, transactions, magazines, conference and colloquia proceedings, and IEEE Standards.