Computer retrieval of information related to hydrometallurgical separations from most data bases is limited and is also complicated because the terms solvent extraction, ion exchange, chromatography, etc. have widespread use in a variety of disciplines and widely varying meanings in each. A data base called Separations Science Data Base, designed specifically for retrieval of information needed in chemical separations problems, has been assembled. The indexing is structured in such a way as to allow accommodation of a variety of separations methods (distillation, precipitation, flotation, etc.), but liquid-liquid (solvent) extraction and solid-liquid ion exchange are being emphasized initially. The reference material can be retrieved not only in terms of the standard author, title, source, and date-of-publication entries, but also in terms of the substance separated (both those recovered and those rejected), the separations system and the separation agent used, the matrix from which the separation is effected, and the type of information in the reference.