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Abbreviation | IUPAC |
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Motto | Advancing Chemistry Worldwide |
Formation | 1919 |
Type | International chemistry standards organization |
Headquarters | Zürich, Switzerland and Chicago, Illinois |
Region served
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Worldwide |
Official language
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English |
President
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Natalia Tarasova |
Website | iupac.org |
The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) /ˈaɪjuːpæk/ or /ˈjuːpæk/ is an international federation of National Adhering Organizations that represents chemists in individual countries. It is a member of the International Council for Science (ICSU). The international headquarters of IUPAC is in Zürich, Switzerland, and Chicago, Illinois. The administrative office, known as the "IUPAC Secretariat", is in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States. This administrative office is headed by IUPAC's executive director, currently Lynn Soby.
IUPAC was established in 1919 as the successor of the International Congress of Applied Chemistry for the advancement of chemistry. Its members, the National Adhering Organizations, can be national chemistry societies, national academies of sciences, or other bodies representing chemists. There are fifty-four National Adhering Organizations and three Associate National Adhering Organizations. IUPAC's Inter-divisional Committee on Nomenclature and Symbols (IUPAC nomenclature) is the recognized world authority in developing standards for the naming of the chemical elements and compounds. Since its creation, IUPAC has been run by many different committees with different responsibilities. These committees run different projects which include standardizing nomenclature, finding ways to bring chemistry to the world, and publishing works.